More weapons transfers approved as Israel bombs Gaza and prepares for anticipated retaliatory strikes by Iran and Hezbollah.

The United States has approved another $20bn in weapons transfers to Israel, despite concerns that Israeli forces are routinely violating international law in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

The State Department announced on Tuesday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had approved the arms sale, which includes dozens of fighter jets alongside tank munitions and air-to-air missiles.

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to US national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defence capability,” the State Department said.

The announcement came as Israel prepares for expected retaliation from Iran and the Lebanon-based group Hezbollah following the assassinations of high-level Hamas and Hezbollah officials which have raised concerns over the possibility of a regional war.

The US has said it is working to avoid such an escalation. President Joe Biden on Tuesday said an Iranian retaliation might be avoided if a ceasefire agreement was reached to end the war in Gaza where Israeli forces have killed nearly 40,000 people, largely women and children, levelled entire neighbourhoods and blocked shipments of humanitarian assistance.

Critics have called on the the Biden administration to cut off weapons transfers to Israel, alleging that they make the US complicit in the destruction of Gaza and are an essential source of leverage that the administration has refused to exploit in its efforts to secure a ceasefire agreement to end the war, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted will continue.

Reports that Israeli forces are systematically violating international law and committing abuses such as torture have also failed to stop the flow of weapons, despite requirements under US law that military units credibly accused of gross human rights violations be cut off from support.

Speaking before the United Nations on Tuesday, US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said her country’s goal in the region was to “turn the temperature down”.

“That starts with finalising a deal for an immediate ceasefire with hostage release in Gaza. We need to get this over the finish line,” she said in remarks to the UN Security Council.