This legislative ask is designed to be shared with your members of Congress and their staff.
Since taking office, the Trump Administration has approved a series of arms sales to Israel totaling more than $12 billion. Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRDs) led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT) and Reps. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-7) would block the sale of many offensive weapons that have been used in strikes that have killed thousands of civilians, including aid workers and journalists in Gaza.
These weapons include 2,000-pound bombs—previously halted by President Biden over civilian harm concerns—and D9 Caterpillar bulldozers, which could be used to accelerate Palestinian home demolitions and annexation in Gaza and the West Bank. The JRDs do not implicate missile defense systems such as the Iron Dome and David’s Sling.
The United States cannot claim the high ground when it sends billions of dollars in weapons to a government that has shown so little regard for civilian life, and which credible reports allege has engaged in actions that violate international law. With the ceasefire and hostage release negotiations on the brink of collapse and Israel blocking humanitarian aid into Gaza, there is no time to lose. Congress must pass these JRDs and use all forms of U.S. leverage to bring about a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and across the region.
Why Congress must pass these Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to stop the sale of offensive weapons to Israel:
- Documented Harm to Civilians: Independent human rights and conflict monitors have thoroughly documented the Israeli military’s use of offensive weapons from the United States in attacks that have killed Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Humanitarian groups have stressed that Israeli forces continue to block the delivery of humanitarian aid as hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza are on the precipice of starvation and suffering from the spread of deadly diseases.
- Violation of U.S. Law and Policy: U.S. law prohibits arms transfers to countries that engage in a consistent pattern of gross human rights violations or restrict the delivery of humanitarian aid. Independent monitors have documented severe human rights abuses in Gaza and the obstruction of critical supplies. Continued offensive arms transfers to Israel would violate the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act.
- Leverage for a Ceasefire: There is no military solution to this crisis in Israel-Palestine and across the Middle East, and more weapons of war will only escalate the violence. By stopping these arms sales, Congress would send a clear message that only diplomacy – not more weapons – is the way to bring all hostages home and achieve a peaceful settlement to the violence in Gaza and across the region.