US Senator Bernie Sanders said that he would back additional funding for Israel’s Iron Dome but that he also demanded the same $1 billion aid commitment for Gaza, as a necessary counterweight to the US’ overwhelming military support for Israel, according to Israeli media.
Giving Israel an extra $1 billion in emergency funding would be “unconscionable” and “irresponsible”, Sanders wrote in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, prior to a vote over the $1 billion emergency funding bill for Israel’s Iron Dome, ‘Jewish Currents’ revealed.
Scoop by @alexbkane in @JewishCurrents
"The Senate’s most prominent Israel critic will join the rest of the Democratic caucus in voting for aid for the anti-missile system."https://t.co/H3kzCuhlEz
— Palestine Deep Dive (@PDeepdive) October 8, 2021
“If the goal of this supplemental funding is to help Israel replenish Iron Dome after the war that took place in May, it would be irresponsible if we do not at the same time address the enormous destruction and suffering that that war caused the Palestinians in Gaza,” Sanders wrote in the letter. “Just as we stand with the Israeli people’s right to live in peace and security, we must do so for the Palestinian people as well.”
In the letter, Sanders stressed that he $1 billion in funding is on top of the $3.8 billion that Israel already receives annually from the US as part of the security aid package signed during the administration of former US President Barack Obama.
Racial Justice Vs. The Israel Lobby: When Being Pro-Palestine Becomes the New Normal by @RamzyBaroud https://t.co/QAKU6rS08J via @PalestineChron pic.twitter.com/kTwTYpNB7V
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 8, 2021
The emergency funding bill passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives last month but not without controversy. Several Democratic members succeeded in having it removed from a stopgap spending bill and moved to the annual defense bill.
(The Palestine Chronicle, MEMO, Social Media)
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