April 16, 2026
Weapon shipment to Israel approved – but the divide in the U.S. deepens.
הסנאטור ברני סנדרס (צילום: Gage Skidmore)
The U.S. Senate rejected two proposals to cancel arms deals with Israel.
The deals involved the supply of D9 bulldozers and heavy bombs.
The proposals to cancel the deals were led by Jewish Senator Bernie Sanders.
He argued that the U.S. administration should stop supporting the Netanyahu government.
He said that the U.S. should demand that Israel stop the "atrocities" it is committing.
The proposal against the bulldozer deal was rejected by a majority of 59 to 40.
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The proposal against the bombs deal was rejected by a majority of 63 to 36. However, the vote revealed an unusual rift within the Democratic Party. A record number of Democratic senators supported the attempt to block the deals. After the vote, Sanders said: "We are making progress, when we started the fight there were only 11 supporters, and now there were 40."
The Republicans opposed blocking the arms. Some Democrats also opposed the move. The result: the deals continue, but Israel is gradually losing Democratic support. The political divide in the U.S. regarding Israel continues to deepen.