While the Israeli occupation, according to US Senator Bernie Sanders, has the right to "defend itself", stipulations and conditions must apply for it to continue receiving aid from the United States.

Sanders, a so-called socialist who supports the ongoing genocide perpetrated by the Israeli occupation, does not seek to defund "Israel", but rather put some laws in place so that it practices occupation and ethnic cleansing within some set boundaries.

Calling the Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas a "corrupt terrorist organization," Sanders outright ignored the right of citizens facing an occupation to bear arms and fight said occupation.

Meanwhile, he highlighted that the United States provides substantial financial aid to "Israel", amounting to $3.8 billion annually, with the Biden administration seeking an additional $14.3 billion. However, the Senator outlined specific conditions that must be met for the tremendous flow of aid to continue.

The Netanyahu government, or hopefully a new Israeli government, must understand that not one penny will be coming to Israel from the U.S. unless there is a fundamental change in their military and political positions. Read my statement: pic.twitter.com/x3LlSRhuYO

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) November 18, 2023

Vermont's own condemned what he described as the Netanyahu government's "almost total warfare against the Palestinian people" — emphasis on "almost" — citing the displacement of 1.6 million individuals, cutting off essential supplies, and the tragic loss of Palestinian lives, particularly children.

Sanders asserted that the actions of the Israeli occupation in Gaza violate "every code of human decency" and must come to an immediate halt.

The pro-Israeli Senator put five conditions in place for the continuation of aid to "Israel", and they are as follows:

1. Cessation of indiscriminate bombings
   Sanders called for an end to the indiscriminate bombing that has resulted in the loss of thousands of civilian lives. He urged for a significant pause in military operations to allow for massive humanitarian assistance to reach the region.

2.  Right to return for the displaced
   Sanders insisted on recognizing the right of displaced Gazans to return to their homes.

3. No long-term re-occupation, blockade
   The Senator demanded a commitment to avoiding long-term Israeli re-occupation or blockade of the Gaza Strip.

4. End to settler violence, freeze on settlement expansion
   He called for an end to settler violence in the West Bank and a freeze on the expansion of Israeli settlements.

5. Commitment to peace talks for a 'two-state solution' 
   Sanders emphasized the need for a commitment to broad peace talks, aiming for a "two-state solution" after the brutal war on Gaza is over.

According to the Democrat, not a single penny of US aid will be provided to "Israel" unless there is a "fundamental change in their military and political positions."

Calls for ceasefire

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Sanders received a letter from 330 delegates to the Democratic National Convention who backed him during his 2016 and 2020 presidential bids, urging him to introduce a resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The delegates also urged him to support an end to the blockade of Gaza, the occupation of Palestinian land, US funding, and the expansion of Israeli settlements. 

The letter read, “We’ve progressed beyond the stage of seeking mere condemnations or symbolic gestures,” adding, “We concur with your assertion that these ‘unspeakable crimes’ must cease and that ‘the bombs and missiles from both sides’ should be halted. But Palestinians require more than just a ‘humanitarian pause'.” 

This comes as Congress is considering a funding request, including over $14.3 billion for "Israel", as part of a national security supplemental package, amid calls from within to halt such funding.

Avoiding the word 'ceasefire'

This comes in light of a letter sent to Sanders three weeks after hundreds of Sanders' presidential campaign alumni urged him for a ceasefire. Since its release, he has only called for a humanitarian pause; to “stop the bombing”; and asking Congress, the Biden administration, and the world to “take action".

Read next: Netanyahu less likely to listen to ceasefire even if by US

The letter came one day after over 115 former staffers for President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama praised US President Joe Biden for his “staunch support of Israel.”

Marcy Winograd, a 2020 Sanders delegate from California’s 24th congressional district and a co-founding member of the Los Angeles chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace, expressed, “As a Jewish person of conscience watching Israeli genocide in real time, I say, not in my name, not with my tax dollars, shall Israel bomb and deprive a trapped population, half of them children, of water, food, medicine and fuel."

“As a Jewish member of Congress, Senator Sanders’ voice would be particularly persuasive in demanding an end to Israel’s violations of international law that shock the world to leave us feeling unmoored from our own humanity," she added.

Earlier this month, while he called for an end to the killing of thousands of “innocent men, women and children," Sanders reiterated his stance against a ceasefire in the Strip, saying, “I don’t know how you could have a permanent ceasefire with an organization like Hamas which is dedicated to destroying the state of Israel … and has got to go."