Memes

Is there anyone in the American government doing more than Sanders to oppose Israel?

Sen. Bernie Sanders Has Become a Leading Critic of Israel’s War in Gaza

“If you look at the totality of what’s going on, it is not a war against Hamas; it is a war against the Palestinian people,” Sanders said.

The U.S. is complicit in the death and devastation in Gaza, Sanders said, because of its continued willingness to supply Israel with arms. He said he has focused more on conditioning or restricting such aid than on calls for a permanent ceasefire because that’s the most effective way for the U.S. to exert the leverage necessary to end the war.

“This is being done with your tax dollars,” Sanders said. “That’s what upsets me very, very much.”

Sanders to Force Votes to Block Arms Sales to Israel Amid Starvation in Gaza

Sanders said: “U.S. taxpayers have spent tens of billions of dollars in support of the racist, extremist Netanyahu government. Enough is enough. We cannot continue to spend taxpayer money on a government which has killed some 60,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 143,000 — most of whom are women, children and the elderly. We cannot continue supporting a government which has blocked humanitarian aid, caused massive famine and literally starved the people of Gaza.”

In the last two weeks, dozens of young children have died from starvation. Doctors say it will soon be too late to stop a wave of famine-related deaths in Gaza. Children’s bodies are eating themselves from within, their organs are shutting down. This is the direct result of Netanyahu’s policies.

Israel’s six-week blockade and subsequent replacement of the established United Nations distribution system with the untested Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has turned aid sites into civilian killing fields. In the last two months, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been shot while trying to get food aid, mostly at GHF sites. These near-daily massacres have seen Israeli soldiers repeatedly fire into unarmed crowds, testimony confirmed by American contractors.

“The time is long overdue for Congress to use the leverage we have — tens of billions in arms and military aid — to demand that Israel end these atrocities,” Sanders continued.

Sadly only 27 Democratic Senators supported this resolution. With all Republicans and the remaining other Democratic Senators voting against it, the resolution failed.

The Senate rejected S.J.Res.34, which would have prohibited the sale of $675 million in weapons to Israel, such as 1,000-pound bombs and Joint Direct Attack Munition guidance kits used in airstrikes, by a vote of 27–70. Nineteen Democrats joined Republicans to block the measure.

Bernie Sanders labels Netanyahu 'war criminal' as Israeli leader visits White House

Netanyahu started this war with a surprise unilateral attack against Iran, which has already killed hundreds of people and wounded many more. This attack was specifically designed to sabotage American diplomatic efforts: Israel assassinated the man overseeing Iran’s nuclear negotiating team, despite the fact that further talks with the United States were scheduled for Sunday. Whatever you think of the corrupt and authoritarian Iranian regime, this attack clearly violates international law and the United Nations Charter.

The United States must not be dragged into another of Netanyahu’s wars — not militarily or financially. The U.S. Constitution is crystal clear: there can be no offensive use of military force — against Iran or any other country — without an explicit authorization from Congress. No such authorization exists, and any such involvement would be illegal. Congress must not yield on this issue of enormous consequence.

And let’s remember who Benjamin Netanyahu is: He is a war criminal under indictment by the International Criminal Court for the use of starvation as a method of warfare and directing attacks against the civilian population in Gaza. At this very moment, in Gaza, Israel continues to prevent the U.N. and other aid groups from delivering desperately needed humanitarian aid to starving civilians. In just the last two weeks, Israeli forces have killed hundreds of civilians trying to reach the few militarized aid distribution sites the Israeli government has permitted to operate.