The House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a resolution in support of Israel, with 412 members in favor, 10 against and 6 abstentions.
The document calls on Hamas (a terrorist organization recognized in the United States) to cease fire and release the hostages.
Nine out of 10 “no” votes were from Democrats, some of whom said they did not approve of the resolution because it did not address the deaths of Palestinian civilians, Reuters noted.
Immediately after his election as president on Wednesday, Mike Johnson promised that a resolution supporting Israel would be considered first, as the House of Representatives was already “late on this.”
Last week, Joe Biden called on Congress to pass a $106 billion aid package that would include funding for Ukraine and Taiwan. He also requested $16.3 billion for Israel.
On the issue of aid to Ukraine, the new speaker takes a special position. According to him, he supports financing for kyiv, but “under certain conditions.” “We are working on it. We want accountability and clarity on the White House’s goals. We plan to discuss this. It will be very productive,” Johnson said.
The war in the Middle East began on October 7 after Hamas militants invaded Israel, killing about 1,400 residents and taking more than 200 hostages, according to Israeli authorities. Israeli retaliatory strikes on Gaza have killed 6,500 people, Gaza authorities say. Reuters adds that it cannot independently verify this data.