Politics

Senate To Decide If Trump Admin Must Provide Public Details About Increasing West Bank Violence

(DoD Photo by Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz)(Released)

Democratic senators announced their plan Thursday to introduce a privileged resolution seeking answers on increasing violence in the West Bank by the Israeli government.

Democratic Sens. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Tim Kaine of Virginia, along with independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, announced their intent to require the State Department to report to Congress on the increased violence, including the killings of at least nine Americans in the region since January 2022, according to the resolution’s text. The three senators were joined by eight of their colleagues, including Democratic Massachusetts Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey.

The resolution stated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has not been held accountable for the deaths of the nine Americans. Omar Assad, a 78-year-old U.S. citizen, was stopped at a checkpoint in the village of Jiljilya, dragged by Israeli soldiers out of his vehicle and died of a stress-induced heart attack while left lying on the ground with his hands bound behind his back, according to the resolution.

In 2024, two 17-year-old Americans were shot by Israelis while driving, according to the resolution. Tawfic Abdel Jabbar was shot in the head in January 2024 by an Israeli settler, an off-duty Israeli police officer and an Israel Defense Forces soldier, while 17-year-old Mohammad Ahmad Alkhdour was fatally shot twice in the head by Israeli forces in February 2024.

“This Administration has said ensuring the safety and security of American citizens abroad is one of its highest priorities,” Van Hollen said in a press release. “And yet, as we’ve seen violence rise in the West Bank, American citizens have been killed time and again, and they have received no justice and no accountability. It’s past time we get answers on their deaths – and on the growing violent instability in the West Bank and the injustices facing Palestinian civilians on a daily basis.”

“This resolution will require the State Department to begin to produce these answers, which are owed to the families of those who have lost loved ones, to the American people, and to all of those who want to ensure recipients of U.S. taxpayer dollars are acting in line with our laws and our values,” Van Hollen continued.

The resolution draws upon Section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act, which allows Congress to require the State Department to provide information on any country receiving U.S. assistance and its observance of human rights, according to Van Hollen’s press release. After introduction, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has ten days to consider it, and if it fails to do so, it can be taken up for a floor vote.

If the resolution passes, the State Department would have 30 days to submit the report, according to the press release. If the report is not submitted within 30 days, the majority of security assistance to Israel would be prohibited.

If the administration declined to submit the report, certain security assistance programs to Israel would be terminated, according to the press release.

The resolution stated that the Israeli government “has failed” to address the pattern of violence and that the State Department and Department of Justice (DOJ) have either not opened investigations or provided “substantive information on the status of existing investigations.”

“The violence committed by Israeli settlers in the West Bank is reaching an unprecedented level, and as a result more and more Americans and Palestinians are being killed and injured,” Kaine said, according to the press release. “These actions – and the Israeli government’s lack of response to this violence – are unacceptable and threaten the long-term safety and security of the entire region.”

“A mature democracy can face up to its failures and commit to doing better,” Democratic Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith said. “I am not at all convinced that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is up to that task, which is why it’s up to the United States.”

Israel has become a divisive topic among lawmakers, particularly Democrats, as 103 House Democrats voted for Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie’s amendment to slash $3.3 billion in foreign aid to Israel. In April 2024, 37 Democrats voted for a similar measure that would have cut aid to Israel.