By-For-Of The People

U.S. to sell Israel 5,000 smart bombs

The United States will sell Israel 5,000 smart bombs for $319 million, according to a report made to Congress a few weeks ago. The funding will come from the U.S. military aid to Israel, and the bombs range from airborne versions, guidance units, training bombs and detonators. The bombs are guided by satellite, in a system already in the Israel Defense Forces arsenal. The guidance unit receives a signal from a satellite, correcting the bomb's course to the target.

Why don't I like this?

1) What is Israel going to do with these bombs? Bomb Iran? Syria? More Palestinian civilians? Why does Israel need these weapons? I presume that if Israel claims that Iran's nuclear policy is a threat, then adoption of US pre-emptive strike policy could be invoked to bomb Iran.

2) Given the following money trail, the US taxpayer is funding the profiteering of the US military-industrial complex! Taxpayer > US Treasury > military aid to Israel > Israel buys smart bombs from US > huge payment goes to Lockheed (producer of BLU-113/B warhead).

posted by David @ 10:46 PM