Lawmakers on a U.S. House subcommittee have boosted missile defense funding to Israel beyond what President Barack Obama requested, elevating support to its highest level ever, according to The Jerusalem Post.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense added nearly $96 million to the original White House funding request for the long-range Arrow programs and medium-range David’s Sling, bringing the total to $422.7 million for 2011. The amount slated for next year represents a doubling of aid for missile defense from what was approved just last year. The U.S. has paid more than half of the almost $3 billion it has taken to develop and build the Arrow, which has been partially constructed by Boeing. The Arrow 1, which went operational in 2000, and the Arrow 2 were originally conceived to defend Israel against missiles launched from Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iraq , but the latest version, the Arrow 3, is also aimed against Iran

Although the funding still must be approved by the House and Senate, a confidential source close to the issue boasted to The Jerusalem Post “it would be political suicide” for members of Congress not to go along with the recommendation. “There’s virtually zero chance that these [projects] don’t get funded at these levels.”

-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky