Fringe rabbis recruit Jewish clergy to lobby against US military aid to Israel, halt weapons sales

A growing movement among Jewish clergy is publicly challenging U.S. military aid to Israel. The coalition, named 'Rabbis for Block the Bombs,' launched on August 23 and has already gathered 92 signatories. Their primary objective is to garner support for H.R. 3565, known as the Block the Bombs Act, a proposed U.S. bill that seeks to institute a partial arms embargo on Israel.

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we, the undersigned Jewish clergy, implore members of Congress to support H.R. 3565 [...] a necessary step toward ending US complicity in the Israeli military's excessive violence, and in moving towards a just peace and true safety for both Palestinians and Israelis.

The bill specifically targets the sale and transfer of seven types of lethal offensive weapons: BLU-109 bunker-busting bombs, MK80 series bombs, GBU-39 small-diameter bomb variants, Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs), SPICE gliding bomb assemblies, 120mm tank ammunition, and 155mm artillery ammunition, including white phosphorus munitions. The coalition's website prominently features the biblical commandment "You shall not murder" from Exodus 20:13.

In their mission statement, the undersigned Jewish clergy implore members of Congress to back H.R. 3565, describing it as a "necessary step toward ending U.S. complicity in the Israeli military's excessive violence, and in moving towards a just peace and true safety for both Palestinians and Israelis." The coalition asserts that its position is rooted in core Jewish values, including Pikuach Nefesh (the obligation to save lives) and B’tzelem Elohim (the belief that all humans are created in the image of the Divine).

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Our horror at the deadly and ongoing assaults in Gaza and the West Bank and the realization that we as Americans have a hand in enabling those assaults lead us to support the Block the Bombs Act.

"Our horror at the deadly and ongoing assaults in Gaza and the West Bank and the realization that we as Americans have a hand in enabling those assaults lead us to support the Block the Bombs Act," the coalition stated. They further emphasized that supporting the act is "both a moral imperative and a strategic step toward protecting lives in Gaza." While the campaign itself is unbranded, its FAQ lists several supporting organizations, including Jewish Voice for Peace, Center for Jewish Nonviolence, IfNotNow, Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, New Jewish Narrative, and Rabbis for Ceasefire. It is noted that these groups are often disavowed by mainstream Jewish organizations and have faced controversy for their anti-Israel activism and support for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

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Supporting the Block the Bombs Act is both a moral imperative and a strategic step toward protecting lives in Gaza.