Washington 14 Sep (ANA) - The US has agreed a military aid package for Israel worth $ 38bn (£ 28bn) over the next 10 years, officials say, the largest such deal in US history. The previous pact, set to expire in 2018, saw Israel get $ 3.1bn annually. The new agreement follows 10 months of behind-the-scenes talks and will be signed on Wednesday. Pro-Palestinian groups criticised the deal, saying it rewards Israel despite the ongoing construction of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. A pro-Israel lobby group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, said the deal would send a "strong message of deterrence" to Israel's enemies. Last month, the White House warned that the construction of settlements posed a "serious and growing threat to the viability of a two-state solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The settlements are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.(ANA)

FA/ANA/14 September 2016-----