WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has approved the sale to Israel of 155 mm artillery shells and related equipment without congressional review, the Pentagon said on Friday.
Blinken determined that an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to Israel, thereby waiving congressional review requirements, according to the Pentagon.
The sale comes as Israel intensifies its offensive in the Gaza Strip. The U.S. has pressed Israel to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza and has called for it to scale down the war in coming weeks.
The Pentagon said Israel has requested that fuzes, primers and charges be included in a previous request for 155mm shells. The estimated total value of the sale is $147.5 million.
This is the second time this month the Biden administration has skipped congressional review of a weapons sale to Israel. On Dec. 9, the administration used the emergency authority to allow the sale of about 14,000 tank shells to Israel.
(Reporting by Eric Beech and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Caitlin Webber)
