US plans €2.42bn bomb sale to Israel, reversing Biden pause

The Trump administration is preparing to sell Israel 40,000 heavy bombs worth $2.8 billion (€2.42 billion), per Reuters and The Washington Post. The deal includes 20,000 MK-84 and 20,000 BLU-117 bombs, weapons the Biden administration paused in 2024 over mass-casualty concerns in Gaza. Congress has been informally notified.

Bottom line — The proposed sale would be the largest single transfer of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel in recent years, per The Washington Post.

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• The package also includes 20,000 I-2000 Penetrator warheads, according to The Washington Post.
• Most of the deal would be financed through Foreign Military Financing — US taxpayer funds given to Israel to buy American weapons, per Euronews and The Guardian.
• The Biden administration paused a shipment of the same bombs in 2024 over fears of civilian casualties in Gaza; Trump lifted the hold in January 2025, per multiple outlets.
• A June Quinnipiac poll found 48% of US voters and 66% of Democrats believe Washington is too supportive of Israel, up from 16% and 20% in 2017, Reuters reports.
• More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign, according to Gaza health authorities cited by Reuters and The Guardian. A UN inquiry determined Israel had committed genocide, a charge Israel rejects.
• The sale comes as Israel faces growing international isolation over its war in Gaza, which began after Hamas-led attacks killed 1,200 people and took 250 hostages on 7 October 2023, per The Guardian.
• Last year, the Trump administration bypassed normal congressional review to approve a nearly $3 billion (€2.59 billion) sale including 35,500 heavy bombs, followed by $6.67 billion (€5.77 billion) in further sales in January, per Euronews and The Guardian.

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