congress-members-urge-probe-into-use-of-us-weapons-by-israel

A group of progressive Democrats in the United States Congress has called on President Joe Biden to...

A group of progressive Democrats in the United States Congress has called on President Joe Biden to "shift" American policy on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying that US aid should not be used to fund abuses of Palestinian rights. In a letter to Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday (Apr 13), 14 lawmakers also urged the US administration to investigate whether American weapons were used to commit rights violations against Palestinians and ensure that "US taxpayer funds do not support projects in illegal settlements". "Furthermore, 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," it read. US regulations, including a provision known as the Leahy law, prohibit assistance to military forces that commit gross violations of human rights. The letter, led by Congressman Jamaal Bowman and Senator Bernie Sanders, marked a rare call from Congress for restricting the $3.8bn that Israel receives in US military aid every year.