WASHINGTON — A group of Senate Democrats is seeking to block the sale of millions of dollars’ worth of U.S. weapons to Israel nearly three weeks after the two joined together to launch military operations in Iran. 

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A group of Senate Democrats is seeking to block the sale of millions of dollars’ worth of U.S. weapons to Israel 

The move comes nearly three weeks after the U.S. joined with Israel to launch strikes on Iran, setting off an ongoing conflict in the region

Led by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont – an independent who caucuses with Democrats – the cohort of four senators introduced three measures, known as joint resolutions of disapproval, this week that would halt a trio of bomb shipments worth nearly $658.8 million from the Trump administration to Israel

The senators said in a press release that the Trump administration notified lawmakers this month of their plan to carry out the sales without input from Congress by declaring an emergency

Led by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont – an independent who caucuses with Democrats – the cohort of four senators introduced three measures, known as joint resolutions of disapproval, this week that would halt a trio of bomb shipments worth nearly $658.8 million from the Trump administration to Israel. 

The group of Democrats, which also includes Sens. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Peter Welch of Vermont, said in a press release that the Trump administration notified lawmakers this month of their plan to carry out the sales without input from Congress by declaring an emergency. 

The measures specifically take aim at a sale of 5,000 250-pound bombs, 10,000 500-pound bombs and 12,000 1,000-pound bombs. 

“Donald Trump, working in lockstep with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, launched a reckless and unconstitutional war,” Merkley said in the press release. “I do not support sending more offensive weapons to the Netanyahu government.”

The senators pointed to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, which dictates that arms transfers must advance U.S. foreign policy interests and fit with internationally-recognized human rights standards, and made the case that the weapon sales to Israel would violate it. 

“Given the horrific destruction that Israel’s extremist government has wrought on Gaza, Iran and Lebanon, the last thing in the world that American taxpayers need to do right now is to provide 22,000 new bombs to the Netanyahu government,” Sanders said.

The form in which the attempts to block the sales were filed – as joint resolutions of disapproval – means the Republican-chaired Senate Foreign Relations Committee has five days to consider them. If those five days lapse without action, the group can force a vote on the full Senate floor to move them out of committee, although the chances of success may be difficult. 

Sanders previously unsuccessfully tried to block weapons sales to Israel in 2024 amid the war in Gaza – a time in which U.S. arms sales to the country received increased attention and scrutiny, particularly among Democrats in Congress.

The move comes nearly three weeks after the U.S. joined with Israel to launch strikes on Iran, setting off an ongoing conflict in the region. 

Days after the strikes, on March 1, the State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio was signing a declaration to use “emergency authorities” to speed up about $4 billion in military assistance to Israel. The department added in the statement that it had approved about $12 billion in major sales to Israel in total since President Donald Trump returned to office. 

“The Trump Administration will continue to use all available tools to fulfill America’s long-standing commitment to Israel’s security, including means to counter security threats,” Rubio wrote in the statement.

Democratic lawmakers have been highly critical of the Trump administration’s major actions overseas – such as the strikes in Iran and the ousting of Venezuela’s former leader – without input from Congress.