U.S. Sanders Pushes Back Against USD500M Israel Arms Sales
Taking to the Senate floor, Sanders introduced two joint resolutions of disapproval — the only legislative tool available to Congress for halting arms sales — targeting shipments of bombs and armored bulldozers destined for Israel.
"I am offering today two joint resolutions of disapproval, the only formal mechanism Congress has to block an arms sale.
"The first resolution would block the sale of $151 million in 1,000-pound bombs. The second would block $295 million in bulldozers, the machines used to demolish homes in the West Bank and Gaza and make a Palestinian state physically impossible," Sanders said.
The Vermont senator argued that American taxpayers have no appetite for continued financial backing of what he described as the "illegal, horrific and expansionist war policies" of the Netanyahu government, noting that U.S. military assistance to Israel has surpassed $21 billion since October 2023.
"And today, we are saying loudly and clearly, enough is enough!" he declared.
Sanders widened his condemnation well beyond Gaza, accusing Netanyahu of dragging the United States into broader regional entanglements.
"It is not just Gaza and the West Bank," he said. "We now know that Netanyahu convinced President Donald Trump to start an unprovoked and unconstitutional war on Iran."
The senator further charged that Israeli forces had escalated operations against Lebanon, framing it as a deliberate campaign of territorial expansion.
"Netanyahu is now waging a full-blown war of expansion against Lebanon. That war has not only killed more than 2,000 people but has resulted in Israel occupying 14% of Lebanese territory," he added.
Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which erupted following the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, has drawn sustained international condemnation. More than 72,000 Palestinians — predominantly women and children — have been killed in the conflict. A ceasefire brokered in October 2025 has held unevenly, with repeated violations reported since.
Sanders is among a growing number of U.S. legislators who have called on Washington to halt weapons transfers to Tel Aviv and end what critics describe as American complicity in the Gaza war.
Both resolutions were put to a vote following Sanders' floor speech. The first — S.J. Res. 32, which sought to prohibit the $295 million armored bulldozer sale — was defeated 40–59. The second — S.J. Res. 138, targeting the $151.8 million sale of 1,000-pound bombs — failed by an even wider margin, 36–63.
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