The U.S. Senate on Thursday rejected two resolutions introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) aimed at halting $8.8 billion in weapons sales to Israel, as the official death toll in Gaza surpassed 50,000 and access to humanitarian aid remained completely blocked for over a month.
The votes, which Sanders forced under the Arms Export Control Act, followed the collapse of a ceasefire in March and ongoing Israeli airstrikes that have devastated Gaza’s civilian infrastructure. Sanders’s resolutions targeted two separate arms deals: the first would have blocked the sale of 35,000 2,000-pound bombs valued at $2 billion, and the second addressed tens of thousands of other bombs and JDAM kits worth $6.75 billion. Both resolutions were defeated by overwhelming bipartisan margins, with votes of 15–82 and 14–83.
The outcome marked an even wider margin of opposition than in November, when Sanders introduced similar resolutions to block $1 billion in arms transfers, including tank and mortar rounds. Some Democrats who supported those measures flipped their votes this time, including Sens. Angus King (I-Maine), Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire), Raphael Warnock (D-Georgia), and Jon Ossoff (D-Georgia). All Republican senators voted against the resolutions, and Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) voted “present” on both.
The 15 senators who voted in favor were Sanders and Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois), Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), Andy Kim (D-New Jersey), Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico), Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts), Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon), Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tina Smith (D-Minnesota), Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland), Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), and Peter Welch (D-Vermont).
Sanders delivered a speech on the Senate floor prior to the vote, warning that continued arms transfers amid the humanitarian blockade amounted to a clear violation of international law. “As bad as the last year and a half has been, at least Israel let some—some, not enough, but some aid through. But what is happening right now is unthinkable,” Sanders said. “Today, it is 31 days and counting with absolutely no humanitarian aid getting into Gaza. Nothing. No food, no water, no medicine, no fuel, for over a month. That is a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions, the Foreign Assistance Act, and basic human decency. It is a war crime. You don’t starve children.”
“All of this is unconscionable. We are talking about a mass atrocity. And what makes it even worse … is that we, as Americans, are deeply complicit in all that is happening in Gaza,” he said, adding that the weapons covered by the resolutions “have been linked to illegal airstrikes, including on designated humanitarian sites, resulting in thousands of civilian casualties.”
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the current death toll in Gaza stands at 50,523, with over 114,776 people wounded and thousands still missing under rubble. Since the fragile ceasefire was abandoned in mid-March, more than 1,160 people have been killed and 2,700 wounded. Sanders framed the devastation in stark terms: “It is American bombs and American military equipment being used to destroy Gaza, kill 50,000 people, injure over 110,000 people. We cannot hide from that reality.”
He also condemned the role of pro-Israel lobbying in shaping congressional votes. Citing the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Sanders said, “If you are a Republican and you vote against the Trump-Musk administration in one way or another, you have got to look over your shoulder and worry that you’re gonna get a call from Elon Musk, the wealthiest man in the world.”
“If you are a Democrat, you have to worry about the billionaires who fund AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee,” he continued. “If you vote against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his horrific war in Gaza, AIPAC will punish you with millions of dollars in advertisements and in other ways to see that you are defeated. AIPAC’s [political action committee] and super PAC spent nearly $127 million combined during the 2023-2024 election cycle, according to the Federal Election Commission.”
“And I must confess that AIPAC has been successful. Last year, they defeated two members of the U.S. House who opposed providing military aid to Netanyahu’s extremist government,” Sanders added.
Sanders’s effort received support from human rights advocates and officials who have condemned U.S. complicity in the war. “We’re witnessing a U.S.-funded genocide, paid for by the billions with our tax dollars,” said Ahmad Abuznaid, executive director for U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights Action. “U.S. military funding for Israel’s war crimes is not in the interests of the American people and yet our representatives today voted to continue aiding and abetting human rights violations of the Palestinian people.”
Josh Paul, who previously oversaw arms policy at the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, resigned in 2023 in protest over arms transfers to Israel. In a statement after the vote, Paul said, “If any other country in the world was using American bombs to kill thousands of innocent people—including the greatest loss of life among journalists in history, and the greatest loss of life among U.N. workers since the organization was established—U.S. Senators would be lining up to block such weapons transfers.”
“Continued unfettered arms sales to Israel enables gross human rights violations and will keep Israel from coming back to the negotiating table after a broken ceasefire,” he said. “The transfer of these arms by consecutive presidents undermines our credibility and morality as a global power—while Congress’ acquiescence is a failure of our elected officials to stand up for the application of our own laws.”
“I left my post at the State Department in 2023 because the arms transfers I was being asked to facilitate were not being done in the name of peace, security, nor the interests of the American people,” Paul said. “Our government must reassess not just our policies, but the values driving them.”
Dr. Mimi Syed, an emergency medicine physician who completed two medical tours in Gaza in 2023, also condemned the Senate’s decision. “Every day in Gaza, I witnessed the devastating consequences of these U.S.-made bombs—entire families buried under rubble, hospitals forced to shut down, and patients left to die because there’s no power, no medicine, and no way to evacuate,” Syed said. “The U.S. is not just enabling these atrocities—it is directly funding it. And things have only worsened since Israel broke the cease-fire two weeks ago.”
The vote also took place against the backdrop of the Trump administration’s recent embrace of Israel’s government and rejection of international accountability. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair James Risch (R-Idaho) stated that just before entering the chamber, he was handed a statement detailing President Trump’s opposition to the resolutions. Since returning to office in January, Trump has welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House, proposed a U.S. takeover of Gaza, and sanctioned the International Criminal Court for issuing arrest warrants for Netanyahu and other Israeli officials.
In the House, Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan) and Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) have introduced companion legislation to block the same arms transfers, but it remains unclear whether a vote will be brought forward. Without broader legislative support or executive cooperation, efforts to halt U.S. military aid to Israel face significant structural and political barriers.
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