US Senator Bernie Sanders backs Canada's ban on arms sales to Israel

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Independent US Senator Bernie Sanders on Wednesday gave vocal support to Canada's decision to ban all arms shipments to Israel.

"Canada’s parliament has voted to stop arms sales to Israel. They are absolutely right to do so," Sanders, an outspoken critic of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, said on X.

His remarks came a day after Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said that Canada's Trudeau government will halt future arms exports to Israel.

"Given the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, including widespread and growing starvation, the U.S. should not provide another nickel for (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu’s war machine," Sanders stressed.

I​​​​​​​srael has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by Palestinian resistance group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

Nearly 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and more than 74,000 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.​​​​​​​

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.