The department said it had notified Congress on Friday of a sale of 13,981 high-explosive 120mm tank cartridges and related equipment worth $106.5 million.

That sale, while relatively small, comes amid heated political debate over Israel's war on the Gaza Strip, with Republicans slowing a far larger Biden administration request for new military spending for Israel and Ukraine, and Democrats divided over the use of US weaponry against Palestinian civilians.

The State Department said the secretary of state had determined that "an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel" of the weaponry, thereby waiving the normal requirement of Congressional review.

The statement said the sale, from US Army inventory, would be used by Israel "as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense" and would "not alter the basic military balance in the region."

On Wednesday, Republican senators blocked a White House request for $106 billion in emergency aid primarily for Ukraine and Israel as conservatives balked at the exclusion of immigration reforms they had demanded.

The package would include roughly $60 billion to help Ukraine in its war with Russia and $10 billion for Israel in its war on Gaza, as well as aid for Taiwan.

With the death toll in Gaza steadily mounting, meantime, some Democrats have strongly urged Israel to carry out a more targeted offensive against Hamas targets and limit civilian casualties.

The Palestinian health ministry in Gaza said Saturday that the death toll in Israel's war on the strip had risen to at least 17,700, mostly women and children.

"The crimes and genocide against the people of Gaza are beyond any description... Ending Palestinian existence with American and European support is inhuman," ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said, adding that 48,780 people had also been wounded in the war.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online

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