Dozens of Democrats call on Biden to reconsider Israel support, accusing it of blocking of humanitarian aid to Gaza

A large group of Congress members is calling on the Biden administration to reconsider its aid to Israel, arguing there’s a credible case that the US partner is deliberately blocking American aid to Palestinian civilians in violation of federal law.

On Friday, a coalition of 88 Democratic members wrote to the White House, arguing that Israel’s “restrictions on US-backed humanitarian aid efforts have contributed to an unprecedented humanitarian disaster for Palestinian civilians and to credible reports of famine in parts of Gaza.”

The letter argues that US support for Israel shouldn’t be a “blank check,” and that federal law under Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act prohibits the US from giving security assistance to nations directly preventing the delivery of US humanitarian aid.

“Make clear to Prime Minister Netanyahu that so long as Israel restricts, directly or indirectly, the facilitation of humanitarian aid delivery into Gaza, the Israeli government is risking its eligibility for further offensive security assistance from the US,” the lawmakers wrote.

The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.

Humanitarian officials have been warning for months that restrictions on international aid to the besieged Gaza strip will result in devastating consequences.

«It’s horror,» Cindy McCain, the director of the UN World Food Program, told Meet the Press in an interview airing on Sunday. «There is famine — full-blown famine — in the north, and it’s moving its way south.»

According to US humanitarian agency USAID, acute malnutrition among children under 5 has multiplied by nearly 30 times since the beginning of the war, and the few remaining medical facilities in Gaza that haven’t been bombed by Israel are