US Senate rejects bids to block arms sales to Israel over Gaza
The two resolutions were introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent aligned with Democrats. They failed by 73 to 24 and 70 to 27 in the 100-member chamber in voting late on Wednesday night.
Similar measures, also introduced by Sanders, failed by 82-15 and 83-15 in April.
A decades-long tradition of strong bipartisan support for Israel in the US Congress means resolutions to stop weapons sales are unlikely to pass, but backers hope raising the issue will encourage Israel's government and the US administration to do more to protect civilians.
All of the votes for the resolutions came from Democrats, with all of President Donald Trump's fellow Republicans opposed. Sanders said in a statement he was pleased that a majority of the Democratic caucus had backed the effort.
'The tide is turning. The American people do not want to spend billions to starve children in Gaza,' Sanders said. 'The Democrats are moving forward on this issue, and I look forward to Republican support in the near future.'
Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was one of the Democrats who opposed the Sanders-backed resolutions in April but voted for them this time.
Shaheen said in a statement that Israel has a right to defend its citizens, but added: 'It is clear that the Government of Israel has not conducted its military operations in Gaza with the necessary care required by international humanitarian law. It is also clear that the Government of Israel has failed to allow adequate humanitarian assistance into Gaza, resulting in unbelievable suffering.'
The resolutions would have blocked the sale of $675 million in bombs and shipments of 20,000 assault rifles.
Senator Jim Risch of Idaho, the Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a speech opposing the resolutions that the militant group Hamas was to blame for the situation in Gaza. 'It is in the interest of America and the world to see this terrorist group destroyed,' he said.
Israel has consistently said its actions in Gaza are justified as self-defense and accuses Hamas of using civilians as human shields, a charge Hamas denies.
The US Senate vote came as France and Canada have indicated they plan to recognize a Palestinian state amid growing international outrage over the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Britain has also said it would recognize the state at September's UN General Assembly meeting if the fighting in Gaza had not stopped by then.
Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, destroyed much of the enclave and led to widespread hunger. A global hunger monitor has warned that a worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding in the enclave.
The war began after Gaza's dominant Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out a cross-border attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli authorities.
Israel's subsequent air and ground campaign has leveled entire neighborhoods in Gaza and displaced most of the population of 2.3 million.
Israel says its operations are aimed at dismantling Hamas' military capabilities and securing the release of hostages.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
9 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
‘There is still hope': Pilgrims from war zones gather in Rome
Khader Qassis travelled 32 hours from the West Bank, passing military checkpoints across three countries, to join hundreds of thousands of other young Catholics in Rome for a week-long pilgrimage. While Rome thronged with singing pilgrims, the 20-year-old from Bethlehem said he felt some guilt that he was in the cheerful Italian capital while starvation was spreading in Gaza, which has been besieged by Israel for months. 'It's hard when there are people in Gaza dreaming just to eat and I'm travelling,' Qassis told AFP. The Vatican is holding its 'Jubilee of Youth' this week, with up to a million 18-to-35 year-olds expected to take part. The Vatican has singled out pilgrims from conflict zones -- especially Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Ukraine -- that made major 'sacrifices' to get to the Eternal City. For many living in war-scarred countries, the trip was a chance to experience a breath of normalcy. 'Being here lets us feel that we're free,' said Jessie Khair, an 18-year-old Palestinian woman from the West Bank, wearing a black kufiyah scarf. She was moved by the outpouring of sympathy over Gaza, 'far from the borders, checkpoints and anything that could hurt us.' At the majestic St Peter's Square, a group of pilgrims waved a Syrian flag. Father Fadi Syriani was accompanying a group of 11 Syrian youths, many of whom left their country for the first time. 'It is a generation that has grown up in the years of war that started in 2011,' he told AFP, saying that Syrian Christian youths, a tiny minority in the country, felt 'isolated' from the rest of the Church. Many Christians have fled war in Syria, where a recent attack on a Damascus church killed 25 people. In Rome, Syriani said, the youths can 'witness that there is still hope.' 'Turn to God for help' The Vatican's youth event is also unfolding as Moscow pounds Ukraine with more deadly attacks despite Western ultimatums to end its invasion. Leo XIV, who became pope in May, has brought hope to many Ukrainians after his predecessor pope Francis had repeatedly made comments that infuriated Ukrainians, who accused him of giving in to Russian imperialism. 'For the last few months, the communication is better than what it was,' said 23-year-old Svitlana Tryhub, from the front-line city of Zaporizhzhia but now living in Lviv near the Polish border. 'It's important to be balanced, but it is important to be brave and speak up,' she said. Most of Ukraine's pilgrims came from western Ukraine, the most religious part of the country, with the largest share of Greek Catholics, who pledge allegiance to the Vatican. Because of the ban on military-age men from leaving Ukraine, almost all were women. Valerie Fabianska, an 18-year-old economy student, said she could 'forgive' or pray alongside Russians only if those responsible for the invasion were jailed and their country 'accepted its crimes' against Ukraine. She said the war had made her more religious. 'When the world around you is so unstable, you can find some peace and stability in God,' she said, acknowledging nonetheless that it was 'really hard.' At Rome's Ukrainian Greek Catholic church, an all-women choir sang amid a 'prayer for Ukraine.' Maria Khrystofora, a young nun from a western Ukrainian monastery, said she had noticed that more of her countrymen were coming to the church during the war. 'When people have nothing human to rely on, they turn to God to help them,' she said.
Al Arabiya
9 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Iran rejects western accusations of overseas plots as ‘baseless'
Iran on Friday rejected accusations by the US and more than a dozen of its allies that Tehran had attempted to kill or kidnap dissidents, journalists and officials in Western countries. In a statement, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described the claims as 'baseless', calling them 'an attempt to divert public attention from the most pressing issue of the day, the genocide in occupied Palestine.'
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Pakistan wraps up UNSC presidency for July after helping refocus attention on Gaza, Middle East
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has wrapped up its presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the month of July, the country's UN mission said on Friday, after Islamabad helped refocused global attention on Gaza and the Middle East amid Israeli military actions. Pakistan assumed the UNSC presidency at a time of a spiraling hunger crisis in Gaza due to Israel's blockade of the territory, which did not allow any humanitarian aid to get through to war-torn Palestinian people, as well as Tel Aviv's military actions elsewhere in the Middle East. The South Asian country hosted an open debate at the Council and called for an immediate ceasefire and deliver of relief items to Gaza. It also backed an 'inclusive' political process to stabilize a Syria rocked by clashes between the Druze minority and Bedouin clans that killed over 250 people. Speaking at the wrap-up session, Pakistan's envoy, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, expressed his deep appreciation to all UNSC members for their cooperation, collegiality and active engagement throughout his country's presidency last month. 'Pakistan approached its presidency with a sense of humility, deep commitment to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and focus on Council's core mandate for maintaining international peace and security,' he was quoted as saying by Pakistan's UN mission. 'Constructive spirit and support by the Council members went a long way in ensuring that our work remained focused, effective and inclusive.' Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar pushed for 'universal recognition' of the state of Palestine and its full membership at the UN at a high-level UN conference on the peaceful settlement of the Palestinian issue, which was co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France. During its presidency, the UNSC adopted five resolutions that covered dispute resolution, Red Sea reporting, Yemen, Haiti, Central African Republic (CAR) sanctions, and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) elections, according to the Pakistani UN mission. The country also hosted a briefing on UN–OIC cooperation, a meeting on adapting peace operations in light of major UN reviews. Ambassador Ahmed congratulated Panama on assumption of the presidency for the month of August and assured it of Pakistan's full support, the Pakistani mission said.
