The US State Department on Friday approved billions of dollars in arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia amid heightened tensions with Iran.
The US State Department said it has approved the sale of 30 Apache attack helicopters to Israel for $3.8 billion.
In a statement, the US State Department said, "The United States is committed to Israel's security. It is vital to the US national interest to help Israel build and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability. The proposed arms sale is consistent with these objectives."
The arms sales deal also includes $1.8 billion worth of Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (a modern armored and multi-purpose light military vehicle). The United States typically supplies Israel with hundreds of millions of dollars in military equipment each year, mostly in the form of direct aid rather than sales.
At the same time, the US State Department has approved the sale of 730 Patriot missiles to Saudi Arabia worth $9 billion. These missiles are mainly used to defend against any type of attack in the air.
Israel and the Palestinian independence movement Hamas reached a US-brokered ceasefire in October that has slowed the two-year war in Gaza. But tensions remain high in the Middle East, with the US already deploying a large military fleet to waters near Iran.
Israel carried out major bombings of Iran's nuclear and military facilities last year, while Iran is facing international pressure over its crackdown on anti-government protests in its own country, which has left thousands dead.
Although not an ally of Iran, Saudi Arabia is wary of a potential attack on the country. The Gulf monarchies fear that such instability could damage their business environment and international image.
In addition, the process of normalizing Riyadh's historic relations with Tel Aviv is currently at a standstill due to Israel's military aggression in the Palestinian territories.
The Trump administration has said that the Gaza ceasefire is now in its second phase, with an emphasis on disarming Hamas.
Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023 killed 1,221 people, most of them civilians. Since then, at least 71,667 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's indiscriminate retaliatory attacks on Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
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