The Defense Ministry reported that a massive shipment of military engineering equipment arrived on Wednesday from the United States — including dozens of D9 bulldozers and additional gear — which had been frozen under the administration of former U.S. president Joe Biden.
The shipment was received at Haifa Port, and the equipment was loaded onto dozens of transport trucks operated by the IDF’s Emun Transport Unit and the Technology and Logistics Directorate, which then transferred them for armor installation. The decision to lift the freeze was made at the end of January, just days after Donald Trump entered the White House.
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A shipment of D9 bulldozers from the United States, released by the American government, has arrived in Israel
(Photo: The Defense Ministry)
The transfer operation was led by the Defense Ministry’s Director General and former IDF Deputy Chief of Staff, Major General (res.) Amir Baram, who traveled to Haifa Port for the unloading.
“The shipment of D9 bulldozers is part of a wide-ranging buildup effort of weaponry and equipment worth billions of shekels, which the U.S. administration released and the Defense Ministry procured and transported to Israel,” he said. “In recent weeks, we have received numerous cargo ships and aircraft. We must continue to strengthen force-building to support all the IDF’s needs in the current campaign and in preparing for the decade ahead.”
The Defense Ministry added that, so far, over 100,000 tons of military equipment have reached Israel via 870 flights and 144 sea shipments. “This is the largest air-and-sea logistics operation in the history of the State of Israel,” an official said.
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The most recent transport operation, whose contents will serve the IDF’s ground forces, was carried out by the Defense Ministry’s procurement delegation in the U.S., the IDF Planning Directorate and the unit responsible for international security logistics within the Security Procurement Administration.
In November, toward the end of Biden’s term, security officials confirmed to Ynet that the U.S. administration had frozen a shipment of 134 Caterpillar D9 bulldozers, amid growing protests in the U.S.—both among the public and within leadership—over their use in demolishing homes in the Gaza Strip.
The bulldozers gained notoriety during the war, mainly due to their use in flattening buildings in Gaza. This spurred significant domestic criticism in the U.S., protest demonstrations and intense pressure on the Biden administration. The impact was felt as early as last year, when a Ynet review found that dozens of existing D9s required maintenance. The shipment freeze was also imposed around the time the IDF launched its operation in southern Lebanon, which again highlighted the need for engineering equipment.