A dispute over the defense budget in Israel has reportedly caused the military to halt purchases of interceptor missiles for its air defense systems. According to a report by Israel's Channel 13, a 15 billion shekel (approximately 4.92 billion dollar) allocation expected to be transferred to the military has been frozen due to a budget crisis between the Ministries of Defense and Finance.
The report stated that the military urgently needs the funds to maintain its defensive and offensive operations. It was noted that the delay in the budget transfer is specifically affecting the procurement of interceptor missiles used in air defense systems.
The Ministry of Finance reportedly cited as the reason for the delay its assessment that the requested funds would be used to pay off debts accumulated without prior approval, rather than for urgent needs.
According to information shared by Channel 12 and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (KAN), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military's 2026 budget to be increased from 143 billion shekels to 183 billion shekels. However, it was reported that the first installment of 15 billion shekels, which was planned to be transferred in August, has not yet been paid.
It was noted that the delayed payments and a shortage of spare parts are negatively impacting operational capacity in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon. It was reported that Israeli Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamir stated that they are forced to conduct a budget struggle at the government level in addition to military operations in the field.
It was stated that Netanyahu, seeking to overcome the process, met with opposition leader Yair Lapid to ensure the supplementary budget law is discussed in parliament.
News Source: 12punto
