Demand Progress

First, President Biden took the extraordinary step of bypassing Congress to send weapons to Israel to fuel a relentless bombing campaign that has now killed more than 22,000 people in Gaza. Then, he did it again.¹

Democrats in Congress aren’t happy about Biden’s unilateral actions to sell more than $250 million of tank shells, artillery munitions, and other military equipment to Israel. Congress must reassert its authority and place conditions on any aid sent to Israel immediately.

Sign the petition: Urge Congress to stop unilateral weapons sales to Israel. It’s time to condition aid to Israel so American tax dollars aren’t used to kill civilians and violate the human rights of Palestinians.

The United States gives billions of dollars in military aid to Israel each year along with these weapons transfers. But Congress can act to stop our tax dollars from funding further violence against the Palestinian people.

Hamas's attacks must be condemned, but Israel's response has been disproportionate and taken an extraordinary civilian toll. And the 155mm artillery shells President Biden sent to Israel are uniquely dangerous to civilians — unguided, explosive shells loaded with TNT that burst into around 2,000 metal fragments upon impact.²

The United States should not be contributing weapons to Israel’s bombing campaign, and President Biden certainly shouldn’t be making this decision without congressional input. The last president to sell weapons without Congressional approval: Donald Trump selling weapons to Saudi Arabia.³

In the first unilateral weapons sale, the Biden administration made an emergency declaration under the Arms Export Control Act in order to skip normal congressional review channels to send 14,000 tank shells to Israel equal to $106 million.⁴ Then, Biden sent $147.5 million of artillery munitions and equipment to Israel when he bypassed of Congress a second time.⁵ This is not the democratic process.

It’s time for a permanent ceasefire in this war. And while a ceasefire is being negotiated, President Biden must take steps to limit civilian casualties in Gaza NOT add to them by handing over more weapons to Israel.

Add your name: Condition aid to Israel so American dollars aren’t used to perpetuate violence against Palestinians.

Sources:

1. New York Times, “Biden Administration Again Bypasses Congress for Weapons Sale to Israel," December 30, 2023.
2. OxFam, “Artillery Shells Transfer,” October 2023.
3. Reuters, “Defying Congress, Trump sets $8 billion-plus in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, UAE," May 24, 2019.
4. Politico, “'A disservice to the American public': Democrats rip Biden over weapons sale to Israel," December 13, 2023.
5. New York Times, “Biden Administration Again Bypasses Congress for Weapons Sale to Israel," December 30, 2023.