Aside from ground-penetrating munitions, the United States has also provided Israel with various other types of bombs and artillery shells.
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, the US has supplied Israel with ‘bunker buster’ bombs and a range of other munitions for its campaign in Gaza.
Notably, the US has delivered 100 BLU-109 bombs to Israel designed to penetrate fortified structures before detonating, the report revealed, citing unnamed US officials.
Weighing over 900 kilograms (1,980 pounds), the bomb has been utilized by the US in prior conflicts such as the war in Afghanistan.
This is only one example of the arsenal provided by the US to support Israel’s operations in the besieged enclave, where more than 15,000 Palestinians, including over 6,150 children, have lost their lives. Furthermore, the October 7 Hamas attack, the catalyst for the war, resulted in the death of 1,200 people.
In contrast to its frequent arms updates regarding the war in Ukraine, the Pentagon has maintained a largely muted stance regarding the level of weapons support for Israel, amid global criticism of Israeli military actions in Gaza.
The WSJ report highlighted a surge of US arms deliveries to Israel since the outset of the conflict, including 15,000 bombs and 57,000 155mm artillery shells, primarily transported via C-17 military cargo planes.
Further, Washington has dispatched over 5,000 unguided Mk82 bombs, more than 5,400 Mk84 bombs, about 1,000 GBU-39 small-diameter bombs, and roughly 3,000 JDAMs, a guidance kit that transforms unguided bombs into precision-guided munitions, the report detailed.
In addition to these armaments, Israel also receives billions of dollars in US financial support annually for its military endeavors.
According to the WSJ, large bombs produced by the US have been used in some of the deadliest Israeli assaults on the Gaza Strip, such as a strike that leveled an apartment block in the Jabalia refugee camp, resulting in the deaths of over 100 people. Israel justified the attack by claiming it killed a Hamas leader.
Shortly after the conclusion of a weeklong truce on Friday, during which dozens of captives held in Gaza were exchanged for Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons, Israel’s intensive aerial bombing of Gaza resumed, leading to the deaths of many more Palestinians in less than 24 hours.
The Israeli military, which continually urged Palestinians to evacuate northern Gaza amid its ground operations, announced on Saturday that parts of southern Gaza are now considered a battle zone. Persons on the ground and human rights organizations have consistently maintained that there is no safe haven in Gaza.
‘Questioning in Congress’
Al Jazeera’s Heidi Zhou-Castro reported that the revelation of heavy-duty penetration bombs delivered to Israel has sparked fresh debate about the continued US arms transfers to the country.
“These are highly potent bombs that the US has historically used in open areas during conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. However, Israel is now employing these explosives in a vastly different setting in Gaza, targeting a densely populated civilian population,” Zhou-Castro remarked.
“Many in Congress are now calling into question whether it is wise to continue supplying these ‘bunker bombs’ and are advocating for increased transparency,” she added.
While the penetration bombs theoretically could be deployed to target Hamas tunnels utilized for the movement of personnel and munitions, these tunnels are positioned beneath densely populated urban areas, inevitably leading to numerous civilian casualties if the bombs are used.
Amid mounting international pressure for a comprehensive ceasefire, the US has consistently backed Israeli military efforts. Washington has repeatedly stated it has urged Israel to minimize civilian casualties, even as it has besieged Gaza’s main hospitals.
