Merkley Statement on Vote to Block Offensive Arms Sales to the Netanyahu Government

Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today issued the following statement after the Senate held votes on Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRDs) to halt U.S. sales of certain offensive weapons used in Gaza by the Netanyahu government:

"While Israel had every right to go after Hamas following October 7^th, the way this is done matters. The Netanyahu government has rejected a targeted campaign against Hamas in favor of-as described by President Biden-indiscriminate bombing. The result is the death of tens of thousands of women, children, and the elderly.

"Most of this military campaign has been conducted with American weapons, making the United States complicit in this carnage. The Netanyahu government has also obstructed the delivery of U.S. humanitarian aid, in violation of U.S. law. The result has been massive shortages of food and medicine, casting the specter of starvation across Gaza.

"It is time to end U.S. complicity in the Netanyahu government's military campaign, and so today I am voting against three scheduled offensive arms sales."

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