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Democrat Pressure on Biden Admin Over Gaza War Grows as White House Seeks List of Weapons Sales to Israel
US President Joe Biden, left, meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, to discuss the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 18, 2023. Photo: Miriam Alster/Pool via REUTERS
Rising Democratic pressure on the Biden administration to distance itself from Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza may be yielding results, with the White House asking the State Department and the Pentagon for a list of all weapons the US is planning to send the Jewish state over the next few weeks, according to a new report.
Amid growing calls from US President Joe Biden’s own party to reexamine US support for Israel since Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre, the White House is seeking a full accounting of Washington’s military assistance to Jerusalem, Axios reported on Thursday.
Since the Hamas atrocities, the US has made over 100 arms sales to Israel. However, this is the first time the White House requested such a list in the course of the war, which may be a sign it is looking to conduct more oversight of its aid to Israel.
The Pentagon declined a request for comment on the move, telling The Algemeiner that the State Department “is the lead for security assistance programs and will take lead in a potential response.”
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It is not uncommon for a list of planned arms sales to be requested — it has been done with respect to Ukraine, for example — but the timing in this case is notable.
In recent weeks, there has been growing criticism of Israel among Democrats over how it has waged its war against Hamas — particularly due to the civilian death toll in Gaza — and pressure on the Biden administration for its support for the military campaign.
On Wednesday, for example, a group of 37 Democratic lawmakers, including some who have historically been pro-Israel such as Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), sent a letter to the White House suggesting an Israeli invasion of Rafah may violate its outlined conditions on aid.
Rafah is the last Hamas stronghold in Gaza.
The lawmakers wrote: “While we continue to urge Israel to avoid an expanded operation in Rafah, we share your [Biden’s] obvious concern about the absence of a credible plan for the safety and support of the more than one million civilians sheltering in Rafah.”
They concluded that such an operation “should not be supported by US taxpayer-funded assistance” if it “runs counter to the specific principles outlined” by the Biden administration — a situation they consider “likely.”
In the Senate, top Biden allies are urging the administration to take additional steps to protect Palestinian civilians. Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) said the US should cut aid to Israel if it invades Rafah, and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) said Israel “needs to understand that the casualties they’ve inflicted on the people of Gaza — the devastation they have caused — cannot continue.”
Israeli officials say they have taken extraordinary precautions to try to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza, where Hamas terrorists hide among the civilian population, using them as human shields and placing command centers in facilities such as hospitals.
Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) called for a ceasefire this week, writing, “I think it’s become very clear that Israel has now committed war crimes. They are intentionally starving people.” Castro became the latest member of Congress to call for a ceasefire, joining a group of far left lawmakers who have been calling for one since the beginning of the war.
Israel has argued that a ceasefire without the release of its hostages in Gaza would allow Hamas to strengthen its position.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it has killed more than 13,000 Hamas fighters in its war to remove the Palestinian terrorist group from power and rescue the more than 240 hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7. Hamas terrorists also killed over 1,200 people during its surprise invasion of southern Israel.
Based on Israeli and US estimates, Israel’s civilian-to-combatant casualty ratio during the current war has been about 2 to 1, compared to the average in urban warfare of 9 to 1 according to the United Nations.
The post Democrat Pressure on Biden Admin Over Gaza War Grows as White House Seeks List of Weapons Sales to Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.