The monumental shift as ⁦⁦President Biden⁩ Biden moves to halt military aid if Israel assaults Rafah is welcome step. Netanyahu must change course towards a ceasefire that finally prioritizes the release of hostages over continuing a campaign of violence americanprogress.org/press/statemen…

🚨This is huge. And very, very welcome.

A few important things in this:
- Establishes conditions on weapons transfers
- Ties conditionality to deterring specific Israeli plans
- Confirms past misuse of US weapons by IDF to harm civilians
- Does all this publicly!

Massive.

I commend President Biden for publicly stating that the U.S. will not supply Israel with weapons if they launch a full-scale invasion of Rafah that hits the population centers.

Read my full statement 👇🏾

A monumental shift for Biden and for decades of U.S. policy that assumed unconditional support for Israel. It's gutting that it took such massive Palestinian casualties and suffering, but it's better late than never.

President Biden is right. We cannot allow any additional U.S. weapons to be used in the continued slaughter of civilians in Gaza. We applaud the President and his Administration for getting this right. The Administration should continue to use leverage to secure a lasting…

President Biden took an important step today to stop the Israeli government's catastrophic actions in Rafah. We applaud it and encourage him & the administration to do everything in their power to help reach a ceasefire for the people of Gaza & return hostages to their families.

.President Biden has long warned PM Netanyahu that invading Rafah would be a 'red line” — it would result in untold civilian death & destruction, and undermine our efforts to return the hostages.

I applaud him for making clear today that the U.S. will not be complicit in this suffering.

Trump was impeached for using foreign aid as a lever for his own personal interests. America withholds foreign aid from countries for various strategic reasons all the time.

EVP Matt Duss responds to @potus Biden’s decision to withhold aid for Israel’s Rafah invasion↘️

Donald Trump’s former bankruptcy lawyer and Ambassador to Israel, who wrote a self-congratulatory book claiming he “brought peace to the Middle East” in the title itself, says President Biden is “siding with Hamas” and that “it’s all to gain the votes of self-hating Americans.”

“By stifling criticism of Israel the IHRA definition hardens the dangerous notion that Jewish identity is inextricably linked to every decision of Israel’s government. Far from combating antisemitism this dynamic promises to amplify the real threats Jewish Americans already face”

Just weeks after endorsing conditioning US military assistance to Israel in principle, Senate Majority Leader and pro-Israel stalwart Chuck Schumer endorses it in practice.

“The American taxpayer has subsidized Israel's manufactured humanitarian crisis in Gaza,' Dir. Ari Tolany tells Voice of America.

'If the administration will continue to arm & train Israel no matter what, Israel has no incentive to change its behavior.”

🔗 voanews.com/a/us-paused-bo…

In opposing Biden’s modest step to ensure the US abides by its own laws and policies, AIPAC is once again showing how out of step it is with most Americans.

Majorities of Democrats, Republicans and Independents each support a ceasefire and de-escalation:

zeteo.com/p/gaza-israel-…

Hey President Biden, according to our new poll, '70% of voters support a permanent ceasefire and de-escalation of violence in Gaza...Among Democrats, that number reaches a whopping 83%...Even among Republicans...56%, say they back a permanent ceasefire.'
Exclusive:
zeteo.com/p/gaza-israel-…

It’s good that President Biden is starting to withhold some of the arms Israel could use in Rafah, but it must be more than a “shot across the bow.”

Biden should halt all transfers of offensive arms to Israel because it continues to violate US & international law as well as his redlines.

Biden’s red line resets every time Netanyahu crosses it.

Misinformation aside, these mafia-style threats to punish court officials and their families – and implicit threats to invade the Netherlands on Prime Minister Netanyahu’s behalf – are deeply embarrassing, entirely unbefitting of US Senators and may violate international law.

My predecessor Patrick Leahy wrote the law that bans U.S. aid to foreign military units that violate human rights, yet multiple administrations have failed to equally implement the law.

My colleagues and I are calling for the consistent application of the Leahy Law to the IDF.

An official US report assessing Israel’s compliance with US & international law comes due tomorrow as:

- dozens of lawmakers say Israel has failed to comply

- Israel invades Rafah against US wishes

- its government denigrates US efforts to negotiate a ceasefire & hostage deal.