The U.S. is considering sending high-tech bombs to Israel as the Jewish state launches hundreds of airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and prepares for a possible invasion to eliminate the Hamas terror group.
A senior Defense Department official said the Pentagon is “consulting with” Israel on sending the GBU-39B small diameter bomb weapon system, or SDB, as part of the military aid package promised by President Joe Biden.
Israel could also get the Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM, the official told reporters during a background briefing.
The first shipment of munitions has already arrived in Israel, the official said but declined to confirm the contents.
“We fully expect to see continuous delivery of U.S. security assistance to Israel in response to their request,” the official said.
“There are also deliveries in preparation of Iron Dome missile interceptors. And we will continue to be responsive to Israel’s requests for air defense, artillery, ammunition and precision-guided munitions.”
The SDB is a 250-pound guided munition that uses GPS to home in on a target and can be dropped from a plane day or night, in any kind of weather, according to the Air Force website.
The JDAM is a tail kit that can convert an air-to-surface bomb weighing up to one ton into a GPS-guided munition, according to the Air Force.
“One of the categories we are working with the Israelis on are precision-guided munitions. Small diameter bombs and JDAM kits are part of those categories,” the official said.
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “crush and destroy” Hamas after forming a wartime Cabinet with opposition leader Benny Gantz in response to the terror group’s surprise Saturday attack on Israel from Gaza.
“Every Hamas member is a dead man,” Netanyahu said in a televised speech.
Israel has called up about 360,000 reservists and is massing troops along the border with Gaza, which Israel has put under a “complete siege” by cutting off food, water, fuel and electricity.
Israel Defense Forces Lt. Col. Richard Hecht told reporters Thursday that the military was “preparing for a ground maneuver if decided,” the Associated Press reported.
