The Trump administration is preparing a new USD 2.8 billion arms package for Israel that would include 40,000 powerful 2,000-pound bombs, according to US officials familiar with the proposal.
The sale has not yet been formally announced. But the plan has already been shared with relevant congressional committees that monitor major US arms sales. The package comes as Israel continues its military campaign in the Gaza Strip and as its deployment of big bombs in densely populated areas has been under international scrutiny.
The proposed deal would include 20,000 MK-84 bombs and 20,000 BLU-117 bombs. Each bomb weighs about 2,000 pounds or about 907 kilograms. The Washington Post also reported that the package would include 20,000 I-2000 Penetrator warheads.
What is included in the proposed arms package?
The 40,000 bombs are the main component of the reported USD 2.8 billion package.
MK-84 is a large general-purpose bomb whose blast and fragmentation can be very serious. The BLU-117 is also a 2,000-pound-class bomb body used in US precision-guided weapons. Both are designed to target a large number of targets (e.g., structures, military infrastructure).
The proposed package also includes 20,000 I-2000 Penetrator warheads. The sale is expected to be financed largely through the US Foreign Military Financing programme, so US government funding would allow Israel to purchase American-made weapons.
The package had been informally communicated to congressional committees as of Thursday, the US official said. The State Department and Israeli embassy had not commented immediately on the proposed sale when Reuters reported it. A senior White House official said pending foreign arms sales were moving through the appropriate process but declined to comment on the specific package.
Why are the 2,000-pound bombs controversial?
The transfer is important because previously the United States had held up a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel because of fears of civilian casualties in Gaza.
In 2024, former President Joe Biden refused to ship such bombs out to those areas because they were likely to be used in densely populated areas. Delivery of the bombs resumed after Trump returned to office in 2025.
The bombs have since been used by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon. Given the scale of destruction that can result if used in urban areas, the use of such weapons has drawn attention from rights organizations and others. Similar bombs have been linked to high civilian casualties during Israel's military campaign, Reuters reported.
Thus, the sale is being discussed amid discussions of US military support for Israel and the humanitarian impact of the Gaza conflict.
Israel has argued that it does not wish to target civilians but has justified the use of large bombs to destroy Hamas and other militants. But critics have said that heavy bombings in densely populated areas are a disaster for civilians in Israel.
The Deal Still Needs To Move Through The US Process.
Despite reports about the size of the package, the deal is not yet a completed arms transfer. The proposal remains under the US foreign military sales process, officials said.
Congressional committees have been informed of the plan, but the reported package still has to go through the necessary processes before it can be finalized.
The proposed agreement also comes as US public opinion changes on military support for Israel. According to a survey by Quinnipiac University in June 2026, 48 percent of voters said the United States is too supportive of Israel compared to 16 percent in 2017. Democrats were 66 percent of respondents.
For now, the reported USD 2.8 billion package is a proposed expansion of US weapons support for Israel. Its final value, weapons configuration, and delivery timeline could change as the sale moves through the approval process.
