Washington D.C. – Jewish Voice for Peace Action is thrilled progressives in Congress have successfully thwarted a last-minute attempt by House Democratic leadership to sneak an additional $1 billion for the Israeli military into a federal funding bill. This unprecedented victory for Palestinian rights shows that Congress will no longer rubber-stamp the unconditional flow of military funding to the Israeli government.
“Steny Hoyer tried to sneak an additional $1 billion for the Israeli military into a federal funding bill in the midst of a pandemic. There was a time when no one in DC blinked an eye at more military funding to Israel, but progressives in Congress just showed that the time of rubber stamping unconditional support for Israel is over. This is an unprecedented win for the fight for Palestinian rights.”
JVP Action Senior Government Affairs Manager Beth Miller
The fight will continue. House leadership has announced that they will attempt to move the $1 billion in funding to the FY22 defense bill. But this show of true progressive power is a watershed moment.
Now is the time for progressives in Congress to continue pushing for accountability and an end to U.S. funding for Israeli apartheid, including supporting H.R. 2590 the Palestinian Children and Families Act, and initiatives such as the amendment to the National Defense and Authorization Act (NDAA), led by Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, and Mark Pocan, to block the $735 million transfer of Boeing weapons to the Israeli government.
JVP Action thanks the progressives who took a stand today and calls on every member of Congress to put human rights and justice at the center of our policy.
JVP Action staff are available for comment.