WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked a Democratic-led resolution that would have required the State Department to report to Congress on rising settler violence in the West Bank, including the deaths of nine American citizens killed by Israeli settlers or security forces since 2022, Reuters reported.
The 47-51 vote fell almost entirely along party lines: every Republican except Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted no, and every Democrat except Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted yes. The resolution, led by Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and backed by Sens. Tim Kaine, Bernie Sanders and Jeanne Shaheen, invoked Section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act.
The measure itself would not have cut U.S. aid, but under the statute, a failure by the administration to deliver the report could have triggered restrictions on American assistance to Israel.
Reuters reported that settler violence against Palestinians has risen sharply this year. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an election next month, has denounced recent settler attacks even as his government has expanded settlement construction.
The vote underscored the deep partisan divide over U.S. policy toward Israel, with Democrats increasingly pressing for conditions on military aid while Republicans argue such measures embolden Israel’s adversaries during an ongoing regional war.