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• State Dept okays $3.8 billion sale of 30 Apache attack helicopters for Tel Aviv
• Also green-lights 730 Patriot missiles worth $9bn for Riyadh
WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday approved multibillion-dollar weapons sales to both Saudi Arabia and Israel, at a point of high tensions with Iran.
The State Department said it green-lighted a $3.8-billion sale of 30 Apache attack helicopters to Israel, which has agreed to a fragile ceasefire in Gaza.
“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to US national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability,” the State Department said in a statement. “This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives,” it added. Also in the package was a $1.8 billion sale of joint light tactical vehicles.
The United States sends billions of dollars worth of military supplies per year to Israel, largely in aid rather than sales.
Israel and Hamas reached a US-backed ceasefire in October that largely paused two years of war.
Tensions are high elsewhere in the region as the United States deploys a major military contingent in waters near Iran.
Patriot missiles
The State Department also approved a $9-bn sale to Saudi Arabia for 730 Patriot missiles, which are used to defend against incoming attacks.
Israel last year carried out a major bombing campaign against nuclear and other military sites in Iran.
Saudi Arabia has voiced caution about an attack on Iran as Gulf monarchies fear instability that could jeopardise their reputation as business havens.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian that Riyadh will not allow its airspace or territory to be used for military actions against Tehran, state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday.
In a phone call with Pezeshkian, the crown prince affirmed his country’s support for any “efforts that would resolve differences through dialogue” to bolster security and stability in the region.
Earlier, Iranian media reported that Pezeshkian told bin Salman that Tehran welcomes any process, within the framework of international law, that prevents war.
Earlier in November, President Trump said Saudi Arabia was being designated as a “major, non-Nato ally”.
The status provides a US partner with military and economic privileges but does not entail security commitments. According to Politico, the other countries in that category include Israel, Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar.
The White House also announced the sale of F-35 fighter jets to the Kingdom, however, the jets will be less advanced than those operated by Israel, in line with a US law that guarantees Israel’s military edge in the region.
The Trump administration has said that the Gaza ceasefire is now in its second phase, with a focus on disarming Hamas.
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,221 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally that includes hostages who died or were killed during their captivity in the Gaza Strip.
Since then, at least 71,667 Palestinians have been killed in the small coastal territory by Israel’s retaliatory military campaign, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2026
