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Senate Rejects Sanders' Historic Effort to Block $20 Billion Offensive Arms Sale to Israel

Nov 20, 2024, 04:33 PM

On Wednesday, the US Senate held its first-ever vote on resolutions introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders to block the sale of certain offensive weapons to Israel, including $20 billion in armaments such as tank rounds and Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kits. The resolutions cited concerns over Israel's military actions in Gaza and the blockage of humanitarian aid, highlighting that U.S. law prohibits providing weapons to countries violating human rights or obstructing humanitarian assistance. A total of 19 senators, including Jon Ossoff, Chris Van Hollen, and Mazie Hirono, voted in favor of the measures. Despite this support, the resolutions were defeated, with Senate Republicans unanimously opposing them and the Biden administration lobbying against the proposals. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell urged his colleagues to reject the resolutions, stating that disapproving arms sales would "put wind in the sails of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas at the worst possible moment."