Made in the USA, Used in The West Bank and Gaza.(military aircraft)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)

It may have been no accident that Israel kept its helicopters out of sight during the latest track-and-kill operation against Palestinian militants. The U.S.-made Apaches hovered miles from the Nablus office of the Islamic militant group Hamas, firing laser-guided missiles that flew through its window and showered shrapnel inside. For the Israeli pilots, the success was only partial--the strike killed six men in the building, including two top Hamas activists, but also caused the death of two children on the street below. For the United States, it was another moment of regional embarrassment. Once again, Israel had employed high-profile U.S. weapons in an assassination policy Washington opposes.

The Bush administration worries that Israel's use of Apaches in its targeted killings will backfire on the United States. The issue has already fed anti-American sentiment among Palestinians and angered U.S. allies in the region. And some analysts think it undermines the U.S. role as mediator. Publicly, U.S. officials have refused to condemn Israel's use of American weapons in the attacks. But NEWSWEEK has learned from a senior Israeli defense official that both the State Department and the CIA recently voiced their objections, and sources in Washington privately confirm it. Israel's response so far: sometimes it opts for other weapons, sometimes it uses U.S. arms--from a discreet distance.

Even if it wanted to bow to U.S. pressure, Israel would be hard- pressed. It is bursting with American firepower. Washington approves the sale of its most sophisticated fighter planes and technology to Israel before other countries are allowed to ...