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Written by Humeyra Pamuk and Mike Stone
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Biden administration has sent Israel large amounts of munitions, including more than 10,000 2,000-pound bombs and thousands of Hellfire missiles, since the start of the war in Gaza, two U.S. officials familiar with an updated list of arms shipments said.
Between the start of the war last October and the final days, the United States transferred at least 14,000 2,000-pound MK-84 bombs, 6,500 500-pound bombs, and 3,000 precision-guided air-to-surface missiles from… Hellfire variants, 1,000 bunker-buster bombs, 2,600 small-diameter air-dropped bombs, and other munitions, according to the officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly.
While officials did not give a timeline for the shipments, the total indicates there has been no significant decline in US military support for its ally, despite international calls to limit arms supplies and the administration’s recent decision to halt a shipment of powerful weapons. Bombs.
Experts said the contents of the shipments appeared consistent with what Israel might need to replenish supplies used in this intense eight-month military campaign in Gaza, which it launched after the October 7 attack by gunmen from the Palestinian Hamas movement, which killed 1,200. One person and the families of 250 others, according to Israeli statistics.
“While these numbers could be spent relatively quickly in a major conflict, this list clearly reflects a significant level of support by the United States for our Israeli allies,” said Tom Karako, a weapons expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, adding that the munitions listed are of the type Which Israel will use in its war against Hamas or in a potential conflict with Hezbollah.
The delivery figures, which have not been previously announced, provide the latest and most comprehensive tally of munitions shipped to Israel since the Gaza war began.
Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah have been exchanging fire since the start of the war in Gaza, and fears are growing that a full-scale war could break out between the two sides.
The White House declined to comment, and the Israeli embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The shipments are part of a larger list of weapons sent to Israel since the Gaza conflict began, a U.S. official said. A senior Biden administration official told reporters on Wednesday that Washington has sent $6.5 billion in security assistance to Israel since Oct. 7.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed in recent weeks that Washington is withholding weapons, which US officials have repeatedly denied, although they acknowledge that there are some “obstacles.”
The Biden administration has halted one shipment of the 2,000-pound bomb, citing concerns about the impact it could have in densely populated areas of Gaza, but U.S. officials insist that all other arms shipments continue as normal. A single 2,000-pound bomb can penetrate thick concrete and metal, creating a wide blast radius.
Reuters reported on Thursday that the United States is discussing with Israel the release of a large shipment of bombs that was held up in May over concerns about the military operation in Rafah.
International scrutiny of Israel’s military operation in Gaza has intensified, as the war-related Palestinian death toll has surpassed 37,000, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, and left the coastal enclave in ruins.
Washington provides annual military aid worth $3.8 billion to its old ally. While Biden warned that he would place conditions on military aid if Israel failed to protect civilians and allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza, he did not do so beyond delaying the May shipment.
Biden’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas has emerged as a political liability, especially among younger Democrats, as he runs for re-election this year. It sparked a wave of “uncommitted” protest votes in the primaries and led to pro-Palestinian protests on American college campuses.
While the United States provides detailed descriptions and amounts of military aid sent to Ukraine as it fights against a full-scale invasion by Russia, the administration has revealed few details about the full extent of American weapons and munitions sent to Israel.
It’s also difficult to track these shipments because some of the weapons are shipped as part of arms sales that Congress approved years ago but have only now implemented.
One US official said the Pentagon has sufficient quantities of weapons in its own stockpiles and has been in contact with US industry partners that manufacture weapons, such as Boeing and General Dynamics, as the companies are working to manufacture more.
(This story has been corrected to correct reference to $6.5 billion in U.S. “security assistance” to Israel instead of “arms” in paragraph 9.)
