The 2.6-billion-shekel package was approved over the weekend by cabinet ministers during a telephone meeting, the daily Haaretz reported. It will be used for "security purchases" and to address "urgent needs", it said, without providing further details. The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet officially commented on the measure nor specified what purchases the funds will cover. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, meanwhile, dismissed reports over the weekend saying that Israel had informed the United States that it was running short of missile interceptors. When asked by journalists to comment, Saar, who was visiting a site recently struck by an Iranian missile, said: "The answer is no." A finance ministry document circulated to all ministers and reported by several media outlets, including Channel 12, said that "given the intensity of the fighting" the additional budget allocation was necessary. "An urgent and immediate need has arisen to provide an operational response, including the acquisition of munitions, the procurement of advanced weapons systems and the replenishment of critical combat stocks," the document said. The document added that the move constituted "an exceptional emergency decision intended solely to address needs arising from the conduct of the fighting".  The funds will be drawn from the state budget, totalling $222 billion and approved by the government on March 12, and expected to be adopted by the Knesset by March 31, according to the reports. (Bssnews)