Aid To Israel Passes A Crucial House Vote — But Not Without Dissent

Some Democrats voted against providing aid amid left-wing criticism of the U.S. administration’s policy on supporting Israel.

The U.S. took another step toward supporting Israel’s ongoing conflict in Gaza, as the House passed a bill to allocate more aid to the U.S. ally in a 366-58 vote Saturday.

The bill allocates some $26.4 billion to Israel, including for support of the nation’s Iron Dome and David’s Sling defense systems. The legislation also includes over $9 billion in international humanitarian aid and refugee assistance, with some intended for Gaza.

The aid is part of a multibillion-dollar package that rolls together aid for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan, as well as a push to force the social media company TikTok to have an American company oversee its operations. The votes on aid to Ukraine and Taiwan, as well as the TikTok divestiture, had taken place earlier in the day and all passed.

However, the vote on aid to Israel was not without controversy, as 37 Democrats voted against it — a sign of how many members of their party are increasingly uncomfortable with or outright opposed to President Joe Biden’s largely unflinching support for the actions of right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

While there is still strong bipartisan support in Congress for Israel, a longtime U.S. ally, the subject of aid for its ongoing military campaign in Gaza has divided the Democratic Party and the American public. Israel’s campaign, launched in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed over 1,100 people, has so far killed over 34,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children. Meanwhile, Israeli restrictions on humanitarian access to the territory, which has some 2 million residents, have contributed to what experts warn is widening famine in the region.