Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, on Wednesday officially introduced a Joint Resolutions of Disapproval seeking to block the sale of more than $20 billion in offensive US weaponry to Israel.
A vote on the legislation is expected when the Senate reconvenes in November.
In a statement announcing the legislation, Sanders accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “extremist government” of waging an all-out war against Gaza.
Sanders acknowledged that Israel “clearly had the right to respond to Hamas’ horrific terrorist attack on October 7th”, but then went on to level accusations at the Israeli government, claiming it “has bombed hospitals and schools, starved children, destroyed infrastructure and housing stock, and made life unlivable in Gaza. The United States must end its complicity in this atrocity.”
“Sending more weapons is not only immoral, it is also illegal. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act lay out clear requirements for the use of American weaponry – Israel has egregiously violated those rules. American weapons have been used indiscriminately, and several of the systems included in these sales are responsible for a large number of civilian casualties. There is a mountain of documentary evidence demonstrating that these weapons are being used in violation of US and international law. It is also clear that Israel has blocked US humanitarian aid, making it ineligible for US security assistance under Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act,” he stated.
Sanders also accused Netanyahu of thwarting the Biden Administration’s efforts to achieve a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
The United States has been pushing an outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal that President Joe Biden first laid out in May, but Hamas has continuously rejected every proposal that has been presented to it.
Despite this, Sanders wrote in his statement, “Every time an agreement appears close, Netanyahu introduces new demands and sinks the deal. It is clear that Netanyahu is prolonging the war to cling to power and avoid prosecution for corruption.”
Sanders argued that Netanyahu has resisted Biden’s calls for a deal that would prevent a “full-scale war” and claimed, “Netanyahu has resisted these calls. Instead, at every stage of this conflict, when presented with the choice between military escalation and diplomacy, Netanyahu has chosen to escalate to preserve his coalition at home.”
Sanders is one of Israel’s fiercest critics in Congress, having most recently boycotted Netanyahu’s Congress speech while branding Netanyahu a “war criminal”.
He has in the past referred to the Israeli government as “racist” and has advocated for the US to condition its aid to Israel.
Despite the fact that Sanders has become steadily more critical of Israel’s war in Gaza, he has resisted calling for a permanent ceasefire, which he says would open the door to further Hamas attacks.