A push to compel accountability from Israel over the deaths of nine American citizens and the detention of three additional U.S. nationals in the occupied West Bank is set to reach a Senate vote as early as next week, according to Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, who announced the timeline Thursday.
A longstanding advocate for Palestinian human rights and stricter oversight of U.S. military assistance to Israel, Van Hollen introduced Senate Resolution 852 earlier this month. The resolution is rooted in Section 502(b) of the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act, a little-used provision that grants congressional lawmakers the right to formally request the State Department produce human rights compliance reports for nations that receive American foreign aid.
Israel currently holds the status of the largest single recipient of U.S. foreign assistance, with a planned $3.3 billion in aid allocated for 2025.
Speaking during a virtual discussion hosted by the IMEU Policy Project this Thursday, Van Hollen expressed cautious optimism about the resolution’s path, noting that 24 Senate Democrats have already co-sponsored the measure.
“These are Democratic senators who have put their names on the resolution, which is definitely progress from where we were two years ago when fighting for human rights for Palestinians, whether in Gaza or the West Bank, [it] was a lonely effort,” he told attendees of the session.
As a privileged resolution, the measure bypasses standard Senate scheduling queues after a set period following introduction, allowing it to be brought directly to a floor vote due to its urgent nature for public accountability. If the vote fails to proceed next week, however, it will be pushed to the post-election legislative session following the November 3 midterm contests, Van Hollen confirmed. He has called on American constituents to contact their senators immediately in a final push to secure additional support ahead of the vote.
“We’re at a moment where we see growing recognition throughout the public that is slowly filtering up and slowly having an impact on the bubble that is the United States Congress, and so I think that this is a moment where we can use the fact that American citizens are not getting accountability and justice to shine the light on the fact that Palestinian children and others in the West Bank are subjected to these kinds of abuses every single day,” Van Hollen said.
The biggest barrier to passage, Van Hollen noted, is the complete lack of Republican backing: not a single one of the Senate’s 53 Republican members has agreed to support the resolution calling for accountability. The chamber is currently split 53-47 in favor of Republicans, and a tied vote would be broken by Republican Vice President JD Vance, who is widely expected to oppose the measure.
The resolution comes one month after 45 Senate Democrats signed an open letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging him to take personal, direct action to protect U.S. citizens and their families operating in the occupied West Bank. The letter highlighted a sharp recent surge in bilateral violence that has prompted large-scale Israeli security deployments, mass Palestinian arrests, and multiple reported attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian religious sites and communities.
“We urge you to take measures to prevent and intercede in this violence, establish a credible mechanism to investigate violations of law, and to make clear that the Government of Israel will not tolerate violence by its people, just as it does not tolerate violence against its people,” the letter stated, adding that Israel must launch full, transparent investigations into the deaths of the nine U.S. citizens.
To date, high-profile deaths of U.S. nationals in the West Bank have only been investigated internally by the Israeli military, with no independent probe ever demanded by the U.S. government. Notable cases include 2022 killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot in the head by Israeli forces while on assignment; the 2024 death of activist Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, killed by Israeli fire during a protest against illegal Israeli settlement expansion near Nablus; and the 2025 killing of Sayfollah Musallet, an ice cream shop worker beaten to death by Israeli settlers.
Data compiled from regional monitors shows that Israeli operations and attacks by both military forces and settler groups have killed more than 1,100 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank over the past three years.
This report draws on original independent reporting from Middle East Eye, which provides unrivaled, independent coverage of the Middle East, North Africa and surrounding regions.