Elbit Systems has entered a ten-year deal to supply the Israel Ministry of Defence (MoD) with ammunition.
Director General of the MoD, Major General Eyal Zamir, signed a contract valued at $340m with the indigenous supplier at the Kirya base in Tel Aviv on 31 July 2024.
As part of this long-term deal, Elbit also plans to build a new munitions manufacturing plant in Israel.
The decision was taken to ensure the sustained capability of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in its future operations in the Eastern Mediterranean beyond the ongoing war against the Palestinian militant group, Hamas, in Gaza.
“This deal marks a significant milestone… to ensure the continuous advancement of the IDF’s operational capabilities,” stated Zamir. “We are committing millions to build and expand production lines, supporting our long-term objectives.”
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden has set limits on American military assistance to Israel over humanitarian concerns in Rafah, a region in the south of the Gaza Strip.
Israel war objectives are mounting
Israel’s war objectives have mounted as the ongoing war in Gaza – which began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas waged a surprise attack on the nation – spreads elsewhere in the Middle East region.
Since then, Israel has also turned to Hezbollah, a better-equipped Lebanese militant group, as well as engaging in a serious exchange of fires – in the form of missiles and drones – with Iran.
More recently, at the end of July, Israel sanctioned the assassination of a leading figure of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran. Dr Burcu Ozcelik, a senior research fellow in Middle East security at the British think tank, the Royal United Services Institute, commented on the likely consequences of the attack.
“While it is not the first targeted assassination against a high-level figure within the so-called ‘Axis of Resistance,’ at this juncture of intense tit-for-tat and a high stakes geopolitical conflict, it will have ripple effects across the region.
“This calls into question what a coordinated response to Iranian retaliation—as seen in April to support Israel—may look like among regional states.”
