Biden intends to send an arms shipment worth $8 billion to Israel

The US State Department has notified Congress of a planned $8bn (£6.4bn) arms deal to Israel, a US official has confirmed to the BBC.

The weapons shipment, which needs approval from the House and Senate committees, includes missiles, missiles and other ammunition.

The move comes just over two weeks before President Joe Biden leaves office. Washington rejected calls to suspend military support for Israel due to the number of civilians killed during the war in Gaza.

In August, the United States agreed to sell fighter jets and other military equipment to Israel worth $20 billion.

The US official said the latest planned shipment contains air-to-air missiles, Hellfire missiles, artillery shells and bombs.

A source familiar with the sale told the BBC on Saturday: “The president has made clear that Israel has the right to defend its citizens, consistent with international law and international humanitarian law, and to deter aggression by Iran and its affiliated organizations.

“We will continue to provide the capabilities necessary to defend Israel.”

Biden has often described American support for Israel as iron-clad.

The United States is by far the largest arms supplier to Israel, having helped it build one of the most technologically advanced armies in the world.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the United States accounted for 69% of Israel’s imports of major conventional arms between 2019 and 2023.

Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to the group’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

More than 45,580 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the Strip.