A Pentagon watchdog report found that the U.S. failed to properly track some of the $13.4 billion worth of military support sent to Israel following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack.
The War Department Office of Inspector General found that U.S. agencies responsible for tracking some of the most sensitive American defense articles sent to Israel did not fully comply with enhanced end-use monitoring requirements, the strictest oversight system used for technology vulnerable to theft, misuse, or exploitation by adversaries.
The audit reviewed how the Pentagon tracked roughly $13.4 billion in military support provided to Israel after the Hamas attacks that ignited the Israel-Hamas war.
The watchdog concluded that U.S. Central Command and the Defense Security Cooperation Agency did not properly oversee certain defense articles classified under "enhanced end-use monitoring," a designation typically reserved for sensitive items such as advanced munitions, night-vision equipment, and specialized weapons platforms.
The public version of the report, released Dec. 17, was partially redacted, so the specific defense articles involved were not identified.
Still, the consequences could be serious.
Without proper accountability, the inspector general warned, adversaries could acquire the sensitive defense articles and gain "firsthand access and knowledge" of U.S. weapon systems technology — undermining America's battlefield advantage and increasing risks to U.S. forces, Israel, and other allies operating in the region.
At the heart of the monitoring effort is the Office of Defense Cooperation-Israel, a U.S. Embassy unit responsible for annual checks on the enhanced end-use monitoring items, including serial-number inventories and physical-security inspections.
But investigators found that as of November 2024, only 44% of enhanced end-use monitoring articles available for inspection had up-to-date reviews — down sharply from 69% before the war began. The remaining 56% were more than 30 days overdue.
The audit also found the office was not accurately tracking the disposition of articles that had been deployed or expended by Israel, despite federal requirements to document where the equipment is located when it cannot be physically inspected.
U.S. officials in Israel told auditors that the operational environment had shifted dramatically, making it difficult to conduct timely inspections and to collect the documentation required to update disposition statuses.
The Jerusalem Post reported that travel restrictions imposed by the State Department, staffing shortages at the Office of Defense Cooperation-Israel, and rapidly evolving security conditions played major roles in the breakdown.
While some monitoring continued — such as logging notifications from Israel about weapons used in combat — the audit concluded that the Pentagon "only partially complied" with its own rules once the war began.
The inspector general also faulted CENTCOM and the Defense Security Cooperation Agency for failing to conduct oversight inspections or assessments that could have identified gaps sooner.
Both entities are responsible for ensuring embassy teams follow monitoring procedures and for intervening when compliance issues arise. Yet neither organization detected the mounting problems in time, according to the report.
The watchdog issued four recommendations. One was redacted entirely in the public report.
Of the remaining three, one was closed after corrective actions updated the disposition statuses of deployed defense articles.
CENTCOM agreed to conduct an inspection or remote inspection of the items in the next fiscal year, and the Defense Security Cooperation Agency agreed to conduct a compliance visit or virtual assessment in 2026.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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