Amid Lebanon Bloodshed, Key House Democrats Say U.S. Must End Israeli 'Culture Of Impunity'

A group of prominent Democrats in the House of Representatives has urged President Joe Biden’s administration to end the “lack of U.S. enforcement” of human rights law as the country continues its military support for Israel — suggesting an Israeli “culture of impunity” is driving bloodshed in the Palestinian territories and in Lebanon, which Israel invaded earlier this week.

“The failure of the United States to consistently apply our own laws … actively endangers the lives of US citizens,” Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) and four colleagues argue in a letter they sent the Pentagon and State Department this week and exclusively shared with HuffPost.

Israeli forces have killed several Americans in the occupied West Bank, most recently Aysenur Ezgi Eygi on Sept. 6, they note. They also cite “credible reports” of Israeli officials subjecting detained Palestinians to torture, sexual abuse and mistreatment, as well as Israeli troops shooting civilians carrying white flags during their ongoing military campaign in Gaza.

Though small, the Democratic group includes heavyweights: McGovern is the top Democrat on the powerful House Rules Committee, and his co-signatories include Reps. Barbara Lee (Calif.), Mark Pocan (Wis.) and Betty McCollum (Minn.), key players on the House Appropriations Committee that oversees government funding, as well as Rep. Joaquin Castro (Texas) of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Specifically, the legislators highlight the Leahy Law, which bars U.S. funding for foreign military forces that are accused of serious rights abuses.

“When it functions properly, the Leahy Law serves two crucial purposes: it prevents U.S. complicity in gross violations of human rights, and it deters violations by incentivizing