NAACP urges Biden to stop sending weapons to Israel, saying they're being used to "harm civilians"

Reuters reports that the NAACP is urging President Joe Biden to "indefinitely" stop all arms shipments to Israel and push Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to end its fighting in Gaza, which has been all but destroyed by Israeli forces using American-made weapons. This marks a rare foray by the Black-led civil rights organization into U.S. foreign policy, underscoring the dire suffering of Palestinians and the fallout surrounding a president who has, despite sometimes being critical of its conduct, remained a staunch ally of Israel.

Though the NAACP said that Israel had a right to defend itself after the October 7 Hamas attacks, its leaders criticize an Israeli campaign that has killed thousands of civilians, including those sheltering in schools and refugee camps, and cut off food and medical aid to millions more. They are also calling on Hamas to return the hostages the group took from Israel and "stop all terrorist activity."

"The NAACP calls on President Biden to draw the red line and indefinitely end the shipment of all weapons and artillery to the state of Israel and other states that supply weapons to Hamas and other terrorist organizations. It is imperative that the violence that has claimed so many civilian lives, immediately stop," the organization said in a statement provided to Reuters.

The call comes just after 45 people were killed in an Israeli air strike on a United Nations-operated school that was housing displaced people, an attack that CNN reported Thursday was carried out with U.S. munitions.

Biden has a publicly stated red line for cutting off Israel: no major offensive in Rafah. But Biden administration officials have insisted that Israel has not yet crossed the line, though Israeli incursions have increased and Netanyahu publicly vows to defy American pressure. And U.S. attempts to implement a ceasefire have been scuppered by Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition partners, who insist on destroying Hamas and "ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel" before considering a deal, despite escalating protests by Israelis who say that the government's unyielding stance is endangering the lives of the remaining hostages.

Nevertheless, the Biden administration has continued sending weapons to Israel, only halting the shipment of the most destructive bombs and artillery shells over fears they would be used to invade Rafah. That is not enough, NAACP President Derrick Johnson told Reuters. Images of dead Palestinians are "raising a lot of questions around why our tax dollars are being used to harm civilians," he said.

In March, a survey by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace found that 59 percent of Black Americans believe that U.S. military aid to Israel should be used only for self-defense and in accordance with human rights standards, while 68 percent support a permanent and immediate ceasefire.

Biden's proposed ceasefire, meanwhile, has been greeted with criticism from the Israeli right, despite receiving some support from the Israeli war cabinet, and skepticism from Hamas.