Democratic representative Gregory Meeks announced Wednesday, 16 September 2026 that he was refusing to validate at this stage an American project to sell to Israel 40,000 bombs of 2,000 pounds, or about 907 kilograms each. The contract, valued at $2.8 billion, raised « serious unresolved concerns » about the possible use of these munitions in densely populated areas of Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. His opposition suspends approval under the informal procedure in Congress, but the Trump administration has legal means to circumvent this obstacle.

Gregory Meeks is the main Democratic representative in the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives. He claims that Donald Trump’s administration failed to provide him with sufficient guarantees of compliance with US law, international law and measures to protect civilians in the use of arms by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

Gregory Meeks refuses to validate the sale

The decision announced in Washington concerns a package of heavy ammunition whose sale to Israel was informally communicated to the relevant Congressional committees on Tuesday, 15 September.

The package is $2.8 billion. It includes 40,000 2,000-pound bombs, a particularly powerful category of ammunition because of the amount of explosives it carries and the damage it can cause.

Gregory Meeks indicated that he would not give the project a green light under current conditions. The elected representative of New York said that he remained supportive of Israel’s security and its ability to respond to regional threats. However, it distinguishes this support from the question of the conditions under which American weapons are used.

His objection mainly concerns the potential consequences of the use of such heavy bombs in densely populated urban areas.

He explicitly cites two territories: Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.

The Democrat considers that questions remain unanswered about the guarantees offered by the US administration regarding the use of these weapons. In particular, it calls for the use of equipment financed or provided by Washington in accordance with the law and with sufficient guarantees for the civilian population.

This position places the protection of civilians at the heart of its refusal to validate the transaction immediately.

Lebanon explicitly cited in objections

The reference to Lebanon is an important element of Gregory Meeks’ statement. The parliamentarian does not limit his concerns to the war in the Gaza Strip. He also referred to the risk of using 2,000-pound bombs in densely populated areas of Lebanese territory.

Ammunition of this category has already been used by Israel in its military operations in Gaza and Lebanon. Their power has fuelled questions about their employment near civilian populations.

The proposed sale would cover a particularly large volume. According to the information available on the project, the 40,000 bombs are distributed between 20,000 MK 84 and 20,000 BLU-117.

Both models belong to the 2,000-pound bomb category. Their mass is about 907 kilograms.

It is precisely the combination of the power of these weapons, their number and the possibility of their use in inhabited areas that motivates Gregory Meeks’ reservations.

His statement mentions directly the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The parliamentarian believes that he has not received the necessary assurances from the Trump administration that these weapons will be used with adequate protections for civilians.

The refusal announced on Wednesday, however, does not constitute a definitive prohibition of sale.

A blockage that could be bypassed

Gregory Meeks’ role allows him to intervene in the Congressional informal consultation mechanism that precedes the large US arms sales abroad.

The main officials of the relevant parliamentary committees are usually informed before formal notification of a transaction. This step allows elected officials to review the project and request further information.

Gregory Meeks uses this procedure to retain his approval.

His opposition therefore creates a political and procedural obstacle to the transaction, but it does not give him a definitive veto.

The Trump administration retains the possibility to continue the sale. Once the official notification has been sent to Congress, State Secretary Marco Rubio may, inter alia, invoke an emergency situation related to the national security interests of the United States.

Such a decision would allow the executive to circumvent the normal parliamentary review procedure.

This scenario is not only theoretical. The US administration has already used this mechanism to accelerate arms sales to Israel.

The immediate scope of Gregory Meeks’ decision must therefore be distinguished from its final impact. The parliamentarian blocks his approval in the informal process, but Washington may decide to move the transaction forward despite this opposition.

Marco Rubio has a precedent

State Secretary Marco Rubio has already used the emergency procedure to circumvent the normal parliamentary examination of a sale of weapons to Israel.

By 2025, the administration had thus accelerated a transaction of nearly $3 billion. That decision had led to a departure from the usual procedure in Congress.

The Trump administration then approved, in January 2026, a new series of arms sales to Israel totalling $6.67 billion.

The 2.8 billion project announced this week is part of this continuity. It would further increase Israeli military capabilities and provide a considerable amount of heavy ammunition.

The U.S. State Department had not provided a public response to the requests for comments regarding Gregory Meeks’ objection and the precise terms of the new contract at the time of the announcement.

The next step will therefore be decisive. At present, the transaction is only subject to informal notification to the parliamentarians concerned.

A formal notification would open a new phase of the process and could lead the administration to address Meeks’ concerns, change the terms of the sale or use its powers to move it forward without its agreement.

Bombs already at the center of a debate under Biden

The 2,000-pound bombs had already caused a disagreement between Washington and Israel under the administration of Joe Biden.

In 2024, the White House had suspended the delivery of some of these munitions because of concerns about their use in the Gaza Strip and the risk of significant civilian casualties.

This suspension was one of the most visible American decisions regarding the conditions for the supply of certain weapons to Israel during the war that began after the Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.

Donald Trump’s return to the White House marked an evolution of this policy. His administration had taken several decisions aimed at strengthening Israeli military capabilities and accelerating certain deliveries.

The volume of the project currently under review goes further: 40,000 heavy bombs would be covered by the contract.

Gregory Meeks’ position therefore reintroduces to Congress the question that had already led to the suspension of certain deliveries: under what conditions can the United States provide weapons of such power when they are likely to be used in densely populated territories?

For the Democrat parliamentarian, the guarantees provided so far do not allow this question to be lifted.

Sale of 2.8 billion still outstanding

Meeks’ decision comes before the completion of the US procedure. At this stage, therefore, it is neither a definitively cancelled sale nor a definitively authorised transfer.

The project remains valued at $2.8 billion and continues to provide 40,000 2,000-pound bombs to Israel.

The Trump administration must now decide how it will respond to the objection of the main democrat of the House’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

It may seek to provide additional guarantees on the conditions of use of weapons. It may also continue proceedings despite its opposition and, if it deems it necessary, use a declaration of urgency.

For Lebanon, Gregory Meeks’ statement directly introduces Lebanese territory into the US parliamentary debate on this sale. The New York elected official explicitly cites the densely populated areas of the country as one of the places where, in his view, the use of these bombs raises questions about the protection of civilians and respect for the law.

The final decision on the contract now remains in the hands of the US administration and the control process in Congress, with the possibility of a further confrontation between the executive and parliamentarians on the conditions for the supply of these 40,000 bombs to Israel.