Senator Bernie Sanders accuses Prime Minister Netanyahu of violating US and international law by suspending entry of aid to Gaza. Previous efforts by Sanders to block arms sales to Israel failed.
US Senator Bernie Sanders announced on Thursday his intention to introduce resolutions next week aimed at blocking $8.8 billion in arms sales to Israel, Reuters reported.
The senator cited the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza following Israel’s military campaign and its decision to suspend aid deliveries to the enclave.
“(Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu has clearly violated US and international law in this brutal war, and we must end our complicity in the carnage,” Sanders charged.
“No humanitarian aid has entered Gaza in more than three and a half weeks since Israeli authorities announced a complete blockade—that’s no food, water, medicine, or fuel since the start of March,” Sanders added.
Despite Sanders’ efforts, the US Congress has long maintained strong bipartisan support for Israel, making it unlikely that his resolutions will succeed. However, proponents of the move hope that bringing attention to the issue will pressure both Israel’s government and US leadership to take greater steps toward protecting civilians.
Last November, the US Senate voted against an effort by Sanders to block the sale of offensive weapons to Israel amid concerns over civilian casualties in Gaza.
The first resolution was voted down by a majority of 79 to 18, while the second one was voted down as well, though 19 lawmakers voted in favor of that one.
Sanders is one of Israel’s fiercest critics in Congress, having last year boycotted Netanyahu’s Congress speech while branding the Prime Minister 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.
