The Trump administration is preparing to sell Israel a $2.8bn package of 40,000 large-scale bombs, in what would be among the largest single sales of such munitions in recent years. The deal, reported by the Washington Post and confirmed by US officials speaking on condition of anonymity, includes 20,000 MK-84 general-purpose bombs and 20,000 BLU-117s — a thermally coated naval storage variant of the same design — along with I-2000 Penetrator warheads built to strike hardened underground structures. Most of the package would be funded through Foreign Military Financing, a mechanism by which Washington provides funds that Israel then uses to purchase US weapons. Congressional committees have been informally notified, though the deal is not yet final.
The MK-84, nicknamed the "hammer" by US pilots during the first Gulf War, is among the most destructive munitions in Western arsenals. Weighing 907 kilograms (2,000 pounds), it sends metal fragments outward for hundreds of metres, can tear through thick concrete, and is capable of collapsing entire buildings. Experts analysing strike footage and blast fragments in Gaza believe US-made bombs of this type have been used extensively there, including in areas Israel had designated as safe for civilians.
The sale marks a significant escalation in US arms transfers. When the Biden administration paused a single shipment of MK-84s in May 2024 over civilian casualty concerns — the only munition it withheld during the Gaza conflict — it drew widespread attention. President Donald Trump reversed that pause within his first month back in office in 2025 and subsequently approved a nearly $3bn sale including more than 35,500 of the bombs, followed by a further $6.67bn in arms sales to Israel in January. Israel has used 907kg bombs hundreds of times in Gaza and Lebanon, and the New York Times reported in late 2023 that such bombs had been routinely dropped in areas designated as civilian safe zones.
The announcement has drawn sharp criticism from across the political spectrum. Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said he would work to block the sale, accusing the Trump administration of supplying weapons to "a wanted war criminal." Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, breaking with his usual alignment, called the package "a gift" to Israel and urged lawmakers to block it. Former congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also voiced opposition, writing that "our tax dollars and weapons have been used to kill tens of thousands of innocent people."
Analysts note the timing carries strategic significance. Brian Finucane of the International Crisis Group said the sale "sends a vote of confidence to Israel" at a moment when the administration says it wants to calm the region. The deal comes amid reported tensions between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and growing bipartisan unease in Washington over unconditional military support. Observers suggest Israel is seeking to lock in broad US military backing now, wary that a future administration may take a less permissive approach. Since the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October 2023, which killed around 1,200 people in Israel and saw 251 taken hostage, Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry.