In a move that places the weight of American military power squarely behind Israel's ongoing campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, the Trump administration has approved a $2.8 billion sale of 40,000 large-scale bombs — among the most destructive munitions in Western arsenals. The deal, funded through US Foreign Military Financing, arrives at a moment of deepening moral reckoning over civilian casualties, and amid rare bipartisan dissent in Washington. History will note that this transfer was authorized not in silence, but against a chorus of voices — from human rights organizations to conservative co
Trump administration plans $2.8bn sale of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel
Israel has used these bombs hundreds of times in Gaza and Lebanon, including in civilian areas, contributing to tens of thousands of deaths according to critics.
Our tax dollars and weapons have been used to kill tens of thousands
Mark
So this is a formal sale, or is it still in the proposal stage?
Mimi
It's been informally notified to Congress, but not formally yet. The State Department won't comment until that formal notification happens. So it's real, but not finalized.
Luke
Right—and that matters because Congress has a window to object once it's formally notified. Right now it's in a kind of limbo.
Mark
What makes this sale different from previous ones?
Mimi
The scale, mainly. Forty thousand bombs is described as the largest single munition sale in recent years. And the specific weapons—the MK-84s and BLU-117s—are among the most destructive in Western arsenals.
Luke
Though we should note: "largest in recent years" is the reporting's language. We don't have a precise historical comparison in the source material.
Mark
Israel has used these bombs before, right?
Mimi
Hundreds of times, according to the reporting. In Gaza and Lebanon, including in areas Israel designated as safe for civilians. That's what's driving the criticism.
Luke
And that's documented by rights groups, but the source doesn't give us specific casualty figures from those previous uses. We know tens of thousands have died in Gaza overall, but we don't know how many deaths are directly attributable to these specific bombs.
Mark
Why did Biden pause a shipment?
Mimi
Civilian casualty concerns. It was the only munition he withheld during the entire conflict. Trump reversed it in his first month back.
Luke
That's a significant fact—it shows there was a deliberate choice to restrict this weapon at one point, and then a deliberate choice to reverse it.
Mark
Who's opposing this?
Mimi
Lawmakers from both parties. Van Hollen, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson. They're framing it as American tax dollars funding civilian deaths.
Luke
Though we should be clear: the opposition is real, but the sale is still moving forward. Opposition doesn't equal blockage.
El Pulso
- Forty thousand bombs — each capable of collapsing apartment buildings and sending shrapnel hundreds of meters outward — are set to flow from American stockpiles to the Israeli military in the largest single munition sale of recent years.
- These same 907-kilogram weapons have already been dropped hundreds of times across Gaza and Lebanon, including in areas Israel itself designated as civilian safe zones, contributing to a death toll critics measure in the tens of thousands.
- Opposition is erupting across the political spectrum: a Democratic senator vows to block the deal, a former Republican congresswoman calls it a betrayal of voters, and conservative commentator Tucker Carlson urges lawmakers to stop what he describes as a gift enabling civilian extermination.
- Analysts read the timing as strategic — Israel moving to lock in maximum American military commitment before a potentially less accommodating future administration takes shape.
- The sale lands as tensions quietly simmer between Trump and Netanyahu, and as Washington faces mounting pressure to attach conditions — or limits — to the military support it provides.
In a move that places the weight of American military power squarely behind Israel's ongoing campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, the Trump administration has approved a $2.8 billion sale of 40,000 large-scale bombs — among the most destructive munitions in Western arsenals. The deal, funded through US Foreign Military Financing, arrives at a moment of deepening moral reckoning over civilian casualties, and amid rare bipartisan dissent in Washington. History will note that this transfer was authorized not in silence, but against a chorus of voices — from human rights organizations to conservative commentators — questioning what it means for a democracy to arm another government under these conditions.
The Trump administration is advancing a $2.8 billion arms package for Israel that would deliver 40,000 bombs to the Israeli military — 20,000 MK-84 general-purpose bombs and 20,000 BLU-117 thermally coated variants, along with I-2000 Penetrator warheads designed to pierce hardened underground targets. The sale would be financed through Foreign Military Financing, the mechanism by which Washington provides funds Israel uses to purchase American weapons. Congressional committees have been informally notified, though the State Department has declined to comment ahead of formal notification.
The MK-84, nicknamed 'the hammer' by American pilots during the Gulf War, is among the most destructive weapons in Western arsenals — capable of sending metal fragments outward for hundreds of meters and tearing through thick concrete. Israel has deployed these 907-kilogram bombs hundreds of times across Gaza and Lebanon, including in areas its own military designated as civilian safe zones. Human rights organizations have documented the pattern extensively. The Biden administration paused a single shipment of these bombs in 2024 over civilian harm concerns — the only munition it withheld during the Gaza conflict — but Trump reversed that pause within his first month back in office.
The deal has drawn opposition from unexpected corners. Senator Chris Van Hollen pledged to block it, accusing Trump of arming 'a government led by a wanted war criminal' with taxpayer money. Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene declared that American voters never sanctioned the use of their tax dollars to 'kill tens of thousands of innocent people.' Tucker Carlson, citing a federal official, described the bombs' destructive capacity in vivid terms and called the package 'a gift' to a government he accused of targeting civilians — urging lawmakers to stop the transaction.
Analysts see the timing as deliberate: Israel moving to secure expansive American military backing before a future administration might impose greater conditions or distance. Brian Finucane of the International Crisis Group noted that the sale 'sends a vote of confidence to Israel,' even as the Trump administration publicly signals a desire to stabilize the region. The approval arrives amid quiet strain between Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, and growing unease in Washington over the scope and terms of American military support.
The Trump administration is moving forward with a $2.8 billion arms package for Israel, one of the largest single munition sales in recent memory. The deal, reported by the Washington Post and AFP, would deliver 40,000 bombs to the Israeli military: 20,000 MK-84 general-purpose bombs and 20,000 BLU-117s, a thermally coated variant designed for safer storage at sea, along with I-2000 Penetrator warheads built to penetrate hardened underground targets. The sale would be funded through Foreign Military Financing, a mechanism that allows Washington to provide the money Israel then uses to purchase American weapons. Congressional committees have been informally notified, though the State Department has declined to comment on the proposed sale ahead of formal congressional notification.
The MK-84, which American pilots nicknamed "the hammer" during the first Gulf War, ranks among the most destructive weapons in Western military arsenals. According to the Washington Post, the bomb sends metal fragments outward for hundreds of meters and can tear through thick concrete. Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, citing an unnamed federal official, described the weapon's destructive capacity in stark terms: a destruction radius of half a mile, a thermal wave reaching the temperature of the sun's surface, capable of collapsing apartment buildings and leaving craters thirty-five feet deep.
Israel has deployed these 907-kilogram bombs hundreds of times across Gaza and Lebanon, including in areas the Israeli military had designated as safe zones for civilians. Human rights organizations have documented this pattern extensively, raising sustained criticism about civilian casualties. The Biden administration paused a single shipment of these bombs in 2024 specifically over concerns about civilian harm—the only munition it withheld during the conflict in Gaza—but Trump reversed that pause within his first month back in office.
The sale has triggered opposition from across the political spectrum in Washington. Senator Chris Van Hollen announced he would work to block the deal, accusing Trump of "sending bombs paid for by American taxpayers to a government led by a wanted war criminal." Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene stated flatly: "We did not vote for this. America does not support this. Our tax dollars and weapons have been used to kill tens of thousands of innocent people." Carlson, too, called the roughly $3 billion package "a gift" to the Israeli government, which he accused of working to "exterminate an unarmed civilian population in Gaza," and urged senators and lawmakers to block the transaction.
The timing of the sale carries strategic weight. Analysts view it as a deliberate move by Israel to lock in expansive American military backing now, before a future administration potentially takes office with a different posture toward unconditional support. Brian Finucane, senior adviser with the US Program at the International Crisis Group, said the sale "sends a vote of confidence to Israel," even if unintentionally, at a moment when the Trump administration publicly states it wants to calm the region. The sale also arrives amid growing strain between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and rising bipartisan concern in Washington over the scope and conditions of military aid to Israel.
Citas Notables
We did not vote for this. America does not support this. Our tax dollars and weapons have been used to kill tens of thousands of innocent people.— Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene
The sale sends a vote of confidence to Israel at a moment when the administration says it wants to calm the region.— Brian Finucane, International Crisis Group
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