Follow us on social

Screen-shot-2023-03-29-at-3.56.21-pm

Lawmakers ask Biden to investigate Israel's use of US arms

American weapons sales cannot be used to commit human rights abuses; increasing West Bank violence has caused some in Congress to act.

Reporting | Middle East

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) are leading an effort to push the Biden administration to investigate whether U.S. arms sales to Israel are being used to commit human rights abuses in violation of U.S. law, Jewish Currents first reported

In a letter to President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Bowman, Sanders and a handful of other House members — including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), and Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) — cited “the rapidly escalating violence in the occupied Palestinian West Bank and the alarming actions of the new extreme right-wing Israeli government” as a catalyst for the investigation “to prevent the further loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives.” 

The letter refers to many instances of violence over the past several weeks that have killed both Israelis and Palestinians and that their concern about the “Israeli government’s worsening systemic violations of Palestinian human rights … have only deepened and grown more urgent under the new Israeli government.”

The letter calls on the administration to ensure that the United States is not underwriting illegal settlements and to determine whether U.S. arms sales to Israel are being used to violate American law (i.e. the so-called “Leahy Laws”) or commit human rights abuses. 

“Furthermore,” the letter concludes, “we call on your administration to ensure that all future foreign assistance to Israel, including weapons and equipment, is not used in support of gross violations of human rights, including by strengthening end-use monitoring and financial tracking.” 

For FY2023, Congress appropriated $3.8 billion in aid to Israel for defense, and nearly another $100 million “in funding for other cooperative defense and non-defense programs.”

“It's long past time for the Biden administration to take a hard look at the use of U.S.-supplied weapons in ongoing human rights abuses committed by the Israeli military, and to impose consequences for those abuses,” said the Quincy Institute’s Bill Hartung. “More members of Congress need to join Rep. Bowman and Sen. Sanders in calling for accountability over the billions in annual U.S. military aid to Israel.”

Jewish Currents adds that nearly two dozen non-governmental organizations have offered support for the letter, but that prominent left-leaning pro-Israel group J Street has not yet to publicly support it. 

“This letter is a welcome step forward, reflecting not only a reaction to the naked extremism of Israel’s new government but also broadly the political space created by expanding support for Palestinian rights among American voters,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now, who charged that giving weapons to Israel “violates U.S. laws prohibiting arms transfers to human rights abusers and undermines our global interests as well.”


Photos: Sheila Fitzgerald and lev radin via shutterstock.com
Reporting | Middle East
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Russia Vladimir Putin
Top photo credit: President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Russia Vladimir Putin appear on screen. (shutterstock/miss.cabul)

Westerners foolishly rush to defend Azerbaijan against Russia

Europe

The escalating tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan — marked by tit-for-tat arrests, accusations of ethnic violence, and economic sparring — have tempted some Western observers to view the conflict as an opportunity to further isolate Moscow.

However, this is not a simple narrative of Azerbaijan resisting Russian dominance. It is a complex struggle over energy routes, regional influence, and the future of the South Caucasus, where Western alignment with Baku risks undermining critical priorities, including potential U.S.-Russia engagement on Ukraine and arms control.

keep readingShow less
Netanyahu, Trump, and Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa
Top photo credit: OpenAI. 2025. Netanyahu, Trump, and Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa. AI-generated image. ChatGPT

Shotgun wedding? Israel and Syria go to the altar

Middle East

For half a century, the border between Israel and Syria on the Golan Heights was a model of hostile stability. The guns were silent, but deep-seated antagonism prevailed, punctuated by repeated, failed attempts at diplomacy.

Now, following the sudden collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024 and a 12-day war between Israel and Iran that has solidified Israel's military dominance in the region, the geopolitical ice is cracking.

In a turn of events that would have been unthinkable a year ago, Israel and Syria are in “advanced talks” to end hostilities. Reports now suggest a White House summit is being planned for as early as September, where Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would sign a security agreement, paving the way for normalization. But this is no outbreak of brotherly love; it is a display of realpolitik, a shotgun wedding between a triumphant Israel and a destitute Syria, with Washington playing the role of officiant.

keep readingShow less
American Special Operations
Top image credit: (shutterstock/FabrikaSimf)

American cult: Why our special ops need a reset

Military Industrial Complex

This article is the latest installment in our Quincy Institute/Responsible Statecraft project series highlighting the writing and reporting of U.S. military veterans. Click here for more information.

America’s post-9/11 conflicts have left indelible imprints on our society and our military. In some cases, these changes were so gradual that few noticed the change, except as snapshots in time.

keep readingShow less

LATEST

QIOSK

Newsletter

Subscribe now to our weekly round-up and don't miss a beat with your favorite RS contributors and reporters, as well as staff analysis, opinion, and news promoting a positive, non-partisan vision of U.S. foreign policy.