ACTION ALERT: Congress Must Stop
$20 Billion Arms Deal for Israel
Jon Rainwater / Peace Action

(August 30, 2024) — The Israeli government has received over 50,000 tons of weapons and military equipment from the US since October 2023. As we’ve watched in horror, these weapons have been used to slaughter and displace tens of thousands of Palestinians, and to uphold a brutal siege that is now starving children across Gaza.

Now, the Biden administration has just notified Congress of its intent to authorize another massive new arms sale to the Israeli government, including billions of dollars in the same kinds of weapons that have already killed tens of thousands of people in Gaza.

The potential for US complicity in even more violence and suffering couldn’t be higher. The most recent arms packages announced look to include:

⚡️ $18.8 billion for 50 F-15 fighter jets and related equipment
⚡️ $774 million for 32,739 120mm tank cartridges
⚡️ $61 million for 50,000 high-explosive mortar cartridges
⚡️ $262 million for 6,500 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs)

If you’re outraged that the US government is green-lighting more suffering and violence in Gaza, I need you to act now. Congress has the legal power to stop this madness, but your Congress members need to hear from you!

Join us and thousands of others in telling Congress to oppose these arms transfers to Israel, and to vote in disapproval of this obscene package of weapons!

The Biden administration recently has talked a better game regarding a ceasefire in Gaza. Yet, they are simultaneously sending a steady flow of bombs to the Israeli government, green-lighting and enabling its atrocities and putting a ceasefire further out of reach. Israel’s genocide has been backed and enabled by the US every step of the way.

The US government has enormous power to bring the suffering to an end. It can pressure Israeli officials to end settler violence. It can lift its restrictions on UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) to allow critical humanitarian aid to reach the Palestinian people. But most importantly –– it must stop sending billions in deadly arms to Israel.

In breaking news, while addressing the Brattleboro Vermont Senior Center this week, Senator Bernie Sanders announced that he will introduce a Joint Resolution of Disapproval against this $20B arms deal, stating “I will lead the effort to make sure that we do not give any more arms to Israel unless there’s a radical change in politics.” This is the kind of pro-peace leadership we need now more than ever!

Please contact your members of Congress today and tell them: no more bombs, no more tanks, and no more warplanes – we demand an end to this brutal war and genocide NOW!

It wasn’t that long ago that only a handful of our strongest allies were leading the charge for a ceasefire. Today, because of our massive grassroots pressure, that has become a common call amongst US officials. We can’t get complacent now, though. This weapons package will only embolden and empower the war and genocide against the Palestinian people to continue at full scale.

Please take a quick moment to urge your members of Congress to oppose this $20B arms transfer to Israel, and to support a vote in disapproval of this weapons package!

THE LETTER

I am writing to ask you to oppose the $20 billion weapons package to the Israeli government, recently approved by the Biden administration.

Since October 2023, the United States has continued sending unconditional military funding and weapons to the Israeli government, even as it acts in flagrant violation of U.S. law and international law. The Israeli government and Israeli government officials are under investigation for war crimes, including genocide, by both the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.

We must immediately halt the sale and shipment of the weapons and warplanes that the Israeli government is using to slaughter and starve thousands of innocent Palestinians in Gaza. Senator Sanders has recently announced that he will introduce a Joint Resolution of Disapproval for these arms transfers. As a voting constituent, I strongly urge you to support this measure and any other resolutions of disapproval against further arms transfers.

Additionally, I urge you to speak out publicly in the media, including social media, calling for an end to transfers of weapons used by Israel in human rights violations. This is the right position to take and your statements can help open the political space for your colleagues to join you. We can not end the killing and humanitarian catastrophe until more pro-human rights elected officials take a stand.

Please do everything in your power to oppose this weapons package, and to support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza to end the suffering and save lives.

Thank you for everything you’ve done to help end the suffering and genocide in Gaza.

Jon Rainwater is the Executive Director of Peace Action