Graphic Truth: Pentagon seeks billions to restock Israeli defenses

The Pentagon is seeking more than $3.5 billion in emergency funding to replenish US weapons and equipment for Israel, following Iran’s large-scale April 2024 missile and drone attack. The largest single request, about $1 billion, is for RTX’s Standard Missile interceptors which are used to shoot down ballistic missiles. Another $204 million is earmarked for Lockheed Martin’s THAAD interceptors, which destroy ballistic missiles at high altitudes. Funds for radar upkeep, vessel refurbishments, and munitions transport are also on the bill. The requests, drawing on Congress’s 2024 Israeli Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, underscore the steep costs of sustaining a heightened US military presence in the Middle East.