An Israeli tank manoeuvres, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, near the Israel-Gaza border, in Israel. Photo: Reuters The United States on Tuesday
approved the sale of $20 billion in fighter jets and other military equipment
to Israel as it prosecutes a 10-month-old war in the Gaza Strip although the
Pentagon said deliveries would not begin for years.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony
Blinken approved the sale of F-15 jets and equipment worth nearly $19 billion
along with tank cartridges valued at $774 million, explosive mortar cartridges
valued at over $60 million and army vehicles worth $583 million, the Pentagon
said in a statement.
The Boeing Co F-15 fighter jets
were expected to take years to produce, and deliveries were expected to begin
in 2029. Other equipment would begin delivery in 2026, according to the
Pentagon.
An expert on the process said some
deliveries could be even earlier than 2026.
"The United States is committed
to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist
Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense
capability," the Pentagon said.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav
Gallant, in a post on X, thanked U.S. officials for helping Israel maintain
"its qualitative military edge in the region" and the U.S. commitment
to Israel's security.
The U.S., Israel's biggest ally and
weapons supplier, has sent Israel more than 10,000 highly destructive 2,000-pound
bombs and thousands of Hellfire missiles since the start of the Gaza war in
October, U.S. officials told Reuters in
June.
The war has devastated Gaza and
resulted in a heavy civilian death toll. Hoping to avert a wider Middle East
war, Washington has sought with other regional mediators to arrange a
ceasefire.
President Joe Biden laid out a
three-phase Gaza ceasefire
proposal on May 31. But efforts have so far been unsuccessful
in bringing it to fruition.
The latest bloodshed in the decades
old Israeli-Palestinian conflict began when Palestinian Islamist group Hamas
attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages,
according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's
subsequent assault on the Hamas-governed enclave has killed nearly 40,000
Palestinians, according to the local health ministry. It has also displaced nearly the entire population of 2.3 million,
caused a hunger crisis and led to genocide allegations at the World Court that Israel denies.
Washington has faced mounting domestic and international
criticism for its military support for Israel.
