Republicans block a measure requiring a report on settler violence and Israeli security forces’ actions in the West Bank.
Nearly all Democrats backed the measure, as the party could soon take control of the Senate. Republicans accused Democrats of seeking political gains by targeting Israel.
Violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has escalated, while the United Nations and most countries consider Israeli settlements illegal.
Republican members of the US Senate blocked an effort to require the administration of President Donald Trump to submit a report to Congress on escalating violence in the occupied West Bank, including the deaths of US citizens.
The procedural vote was the latest indication of growing differences between US Democrats and the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, while Republicans continue to strongly support his coalition.
The measure received 47 votes in favor and 51 against. All Republicans voted against it except Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, while all Democrats supported it except Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania.
The measure would have required the State Department to submit a report to Congress on the deaths of Americans at the hands of settlers or Israeli forces in the West Bank, as well as an assessment of the human rights situation.
Violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has increased sharply this year.
Although the measure would not have cut aid to Israel, the largest overall recipient of US foreign assistance since World War II, the administration’s failure to submit the report could have resulted in restrictions on aid.
Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the measure’s main sponsor, said examining the human rights situation in the West Bank was something that “should have happened long ago,” including an examination of the deaths of nine Americans since 2022.
“It is our responsibility to ensure that recipients of American taxpayers’ money act in accordance with our laws and values,” he said in a statement, referring to Israel.
Republicans accused Democrats of seeking political gains at a time when Israel is under threat, seven months after US and Israeli forces launched airstrikes that triggered the ongoing conflict with Iran.
“I urge my colleagues to vote no on this resolution so that we can stand with our ally Israel as it confronts the scourge of Iran-backed terrorism,” Republican Senator Steve Daines of Montana said in a speech.
Elections Loom
The vote came weeks before the US midterm elections, scheduled for November 3. Polls indicate that Republicans could lose their congressional majority, potentially signaling a shift in US policy toward Israel in the next Congress.
Polls show that the war with Iran is unpopular among Americans, who are frustrated by rising energy prices caused by the conflict.
Netanyahu, who has long aligned himself with US Republicans, faces elections in Israel on October 27. Polls indicate that his right-wing coalition could lose.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. The United Nations and most countries maintain that Israeli settlements there are illegal under international law governing military occupation. Israel rejects that position and considers the territory “disputed rather than occupied.”
Some Democrats, along with a small number of Republicans, have called for restrictions on military aid to Israel over its conduct of the war in Gaza, which has resulted in the martyrdom of tens of thousands of Palestinians and reduced large areas of the territory to rubble.
Source: Reuters
