Palestinian Americans Lobby US Lawmakers Amid Push for $2.8bn Israel Arms Transfer

Washington, DC – Palestinian Americans gathered for a day of advocacy at the United States Capitol as the administration of US President Donald Trump reportedly approved a new $2.8bn arms transfer to Israel. Organized by the Americans for Justice in Palestine Action (AJP Action) group, Tuesday's event brought more than 300 constituents from across the nation to meet with the offices of over 100 US lawmakers. Participants addressed legislative initiatives concerning Israel's war in Gaza, escalating Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank, and the application of immigration law to impact Palestinian advocacy within the US.

Jenna Escheik, a 19-year-old participant from Virginia who met with staffers and lawmakers including Democratic Senator Tim Kaine and Republican Representative Rob Wittman, noted her intention to engage with challenging perspectives. "I think the main point that we’re trying to get every single office to understand is that we’re all proud to be American, and we all have our taxpayer dollars that we just don’t want to see going to wars," said Escheik, who originally hails from outside of Ramallah in the West Bank.

Yaseen Shaikh, a 22-year-old traveling with a delegation from Cleveland, Ohio, met with offices representing Republican Senator Jon Husted—who faces a midterm contest against former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown—and Republican Senator Bernie Moreno. Both Republican senators have consistently opposed legislative efforts aimed at limiting arms sales to Israel. "As I stand among my peers here, among people who I stand on their shoulders, I can only feel hopeful and optimistic that we will make a difference and that change will come," Shaikh told Al Jazeera. "We just have to be vehicles for that," he added.

For decades, successive presidential administrations and Congress have resisted calls to condition US military aid to Israel, a trend that has persisted through the conflict in Gaza, which approaches its three-year mark. Since October 7, 2023, nearly 74,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, alongside nearly 1,400 deaths following a ceasefire agreement that went into effect in October 2025. Reports last week indicated the Trump administration approved a US taxpayer-funded $2.8bn military package to Israel containing 20,000 907kg (2,000-pound) MK-84 bombs and 20,000 BLU-117s. While several Democrats have vowed to block the transfer—with House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Gregory Meeks leveraging his position last week to slow congressional clearance—advocates argue the development contradicts public opinion favoring the conditioning of weapons.

Osama Abu Irshaid, AJP Action’s executive director, pointed to polling data to highlight a shifting political landscape. "I think now we are functioning within this context, where what happens in Palestine, the genocide that took place and continues to take place, what the terrorist settlers are doing in the West Bank, what the US and Israel are doing in the Middle East is catching up with us here," Abu Irshaid stated, "and we’re paying a price." Advocates have highlighted recent milestones, including 26 Democratic senators voting in July of last year to block certain arms transfers, and an April effort garnering 40 votes in the Senate. Additionally, the House Block the Bombs Act reached 81 co-sponsors by August, and 22 Democratic senators introduced a resolution last week demanding a State Department investigation into West Bank violence involving Israeli forces and settlers that has left at least nine US citizens dead in recent years.

Abu Irshaid also expressed optimism regarding potential shifts within the Republican Party, citing a December poll by the IMEU Policy Project showing a majority of Republicans under 45 favoring a 2028 presidential candidate who supports reducing taxpayer-funded weapons to Israel. "I think what we’re seeing now is that the dam within the Republican Party is cracking," Abu Irshaid said.

Beyond military aid, Tuesday's advocates raised concerns over the Trump administration's utilization of immigration law to curb pro-Palestine advocacy. Proposals included reforming language within the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, which the administration has cited in efforts to deport individuals whose presence is deemed to create adverse foreign policy consequences.

Salah Sarsour, president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and a three-decade US resident who was detained by ICE in April and released in June, spoke at the Capitol alongside Leqaa Kordia, who faced detention following campus protests in 2024. Both individuals, who continue to face deportation proceedings, drew parallels between their experiences in ICE custody and the systems funding and arming military prisons in Israel.