Democrats Split as Senate Rejects Bills to Block Weapons Transfers to Israel

The Senate on Wednesday resoundingly rejected a series of three resolutions to block weapons transfers to Israel, shutting down an effort by progressive Democrats to curtail American support for the war in Gaza.

The lopsided votes were mostly symbolic given the strong support for Israel on Capitol Hill. But they highlighted deep divisions among Democrats over President Biden’s continued military support for Israel despite ample evidence that its military has committed human rights violations during its offensive against Hamas, including killing civilians and blocking the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The measures were offered by Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont, who has been a vocal critic of Israel’s tactics in the war. In the days since the election, he has also argued that the administration’s Israel policy, and Vice President Kamala Harris’s defense of it on the campaign trail, were partially to blame for the Democrats’ election losses.

“You cannot condemn human rights around the world and then turn a blind eye to what the United States is now funding in Israel — people will laugh in your face,” Mr. Sanders said on the Senate floor on Wednesday.

He argued that the United States was breaking its own laws by continuing to send Israel weapons when it was using them to target civilians. The laws say that recipients of weapons made in the United States must use them in accordance with U.S. and international law and not impede the flow of humanitarian aid into war zones.

“If we do not demand that the countries we provide military assistance to obey international law, we will lose our credibility on the world stage,” Mr. Sanders said.