Israel's purchase of Apache helicopters was delayed by a budget deficit, and the purchase of missiles for air defense systems was also halted.

According to Channel 12 news, Israel would purchase 12 Apache attack helicopters from the US aviation company Boeing. However, due to the budget deficit, the payment could not be transferred within the required time frame. Thereupon, the production line order reserved by Boeing for Israel was cancelled. The attack helicopters will be sold to the next country in line. It is stated that the delivery to Israel will be delayed by up to three years.

The news emphasized that budget inadequacy directly affects not only air power but also land elements. In Israel, the government has not been able to approve additional appropriations in the defense budget for months.

PROCUREMENT OF MISSILES FOR AIR DEFENSE SYSTEMS HAS ALSO STOPPED

In the news of Israel's Channel 13 television, it was stated that the army had a disagreement with the Ministry of Finance due to the budget not being transferred.

It was pointed out in the news that this situation caused the purchase of interceptor missiles for air defense systems to be stopped, and it was emphasized that the army urgently needs 15 billion shekels (approximately 4.92 billion dollars) to continue its defensive and offensive operations.

The Ministry of Finance, on the other hand, cited the reason for the delay in the budget transfer as the requested resource being for paying off the debts accumulated without approval rather than for urgent needs.

BUDGET WAS INCREASED UNDER NETANYAHU'S INSTRUCTIONS

According to the details shared by Channel 12 and Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation KAN, upon the instructions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the army's budget for 2026 was increased from 143 billion shekels ($47.3 billion) to 183 billion shekels ($60.6 billion).

However, the first tranche of 15 billion shekels, planned to be transferred in August, has not yet been paid.

While it was stated that delayed payments and lack of spare parts negatively affected the army's operational ability in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon, Israeli Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamir stated that they had to struggle with the budget at the government level as well as the military operations in the field.

It was reported that Prime Minister Netanyahu, who wanted to resolve the process, met with opposition leader Yair Lapid to ensure that the additional budget law was discussed in the parliament.