Outrage Over Slain Aid Workers Deepens Democratic Resistance to Arming Israel
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There is strong bipartisan support for aiding Israel in Congress, but the concerns among Democrats could further bog down an already stalled security aid package for Ukraine and Israel.
Outrage over a strike by the Israel Defense Forces that killed seven aid workers in Gaza has supercharged resistance among congressional Democrats to sending arms and fresh military funding to Israel.
The mounting concern has added uncertainty to a pending foreign aid package for Ukraine and Israel that has been stalled in the House for months. It has also fueled calls by Democrats for the administration to stop sending Israel offensive weapons already in the pipeline, some of them for many years.
Until recently, the $14.1 billion President Biden requested in the fall for Israel’s war against Hamas was regarded as a popular and bipartisan sweetener to a broader spending package that includes $60 billion in military aid for Ukraine, which faces stiff resistance from many House Republicans. But that dynamic appears to have shifted substantially in recent days, particularly after the killing on Monday night of aid workers for the anti-hunger organization World Central Kitchen.
A group of House Democrats is circulating a letter to Mr. Biden and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken expressing displeasure with their approach to Israel. The group called on the administration to deny Israel weapons until the completion of an inquiry into how the strike happened and tie any new aid to conditions “to ensure it is in compliance with U.S. and international law.”
“In light of this incident, we strongly urge you to reconsider your recent decision to authorize the transfer of a new arms package to Israel, and to withhold this and any future offensive arms transfers until a full investigation into the airstrike is completed,” the group wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The New York Times.
The letter is being led by Representatives Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, Jim McGovern of Massachusetts and Jan Schakowsky of Illinois.
