Trump administration plans $2.8 billion munitions sale to Israel, sources say

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WASHINGTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration is planning to sell to Israel a munitions package worth $2.8 billion, which will include tens of thousands of highly destructive 2,000-pound bombs, according to a U.S. official familiar with the sale.

The planned sale, which has been informally communicated to relevant congressional committees who weigh in on large arms sales, includes 20,000 MK 84s and 20,000 BLU-117s, the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said.

News of the package was first reported by the Washington Post.

The State Department and the Israeli embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

U.S. public support for Israel has fallen since the Gaza war began in 2023, particularly among Democrats. A June Quinnipiac University poll found 48% of voters and 66% of Democrats believe the United States is too supportive of Israel, up from 16% and 20% when the question was first asked in 2017.

The 2,000-pound bombs have been regularly used by Israel in Gaza as well as in Lebanon, drawing scrutiny from rights experts. More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign, according to Gaza health authorities. A U.N. inquiry determined that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, a charge Isarel rejects.

Israel calls its actions self-defense, after Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages in an October 2023 attack.

The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. Iran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host U.S. bases. U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.

Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; editing by David Gaffen

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Read the original article on reuters.com

Watchdog assessment and method

The headline editorialises, one side gets far more space, and their dead are sourced, ours are stated as fact.

The double standard

Palestinian and Iranian deaths are reported without a named actor, while Israeli and American deaths are attributed to a named perpetrator, applying a stricter standard of agency to one side's casualties than the other's.

How it builds, in Casualty paragraph sequence, sentences 2-5

Palestinian deaths: actor buried in possessive phrase
More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign, according to Gaza health authorities.
Agentless passive with actor softened to a possessive modifier; figure attributed to Gaza health authorities only
Genocide finding hedged as charge Israel rejects
A U.N. inquiry determined that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, a charge Isarel rejects.
U.N. finding immediately neutralised by Israel's denial in the same sentence
Israeli deaths: named actor, active verb, no hedge
Israel calls its actions self-defense, after Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages in an October 2023 attack.
Named perpetrator (Hamas-led militants), active verb (killed), figure stated without qualification
Iranian/Lebanese deaths: no actor named, no figure sourced
U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.
Agentless construction; vague figure (thousands) with no attribution to any authority

The same decision, both sides

Attribution of the killing agent

Israeli and American deaths are attributed to a clearly named, active perpetrator with a precise figure stated without qualification.

Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages in an October 2023 attack.

Palestinian deaths are reported in a passive construction that buries the actor in a possessive phrase, and the figure is attributed only to Gaza health authorities.

More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign, according to Gaza health authorities.

Precision and sourcing of casualty figures

The figure for Israelis killed is given as an exact number with no qualifying source attached.

Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people

The figure for Iranians and Lebanese killed is left vague and entirely unsourced.

U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.

Whether a denial is offered in the same sentence as a finding

The U.N. genocide finding against Israel is immediately paired with Israel's rejection of it in the same sentence.

A U.N. inquiry determined that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, a charge Isarel rejects.

The Hamas attack is stated as plain fact with no corresponding Palestinian or Hamas framing offered in the same sentence.