Israel approves 840 mln USD budget cut to fund urgent defense procurement

JERUSALEM, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli government on Sunday approved a cut of 2.6 billion shekels (about 840 million U.S. dollars) from most ministries' 2026 budgets to fund "urgent defense procurement," Israel's state-owned Kan TV News reported.

The decision did not specify what military equipment or services would be purchased or detail the security needs behind the move.

The cut was approved nine days before Israel's scheduled parliamentary elections.

Government and security officials justified the timing by warning that delaying approval until a new government is formed could undermine Israel's ability to meet "essential security needs."