The key facts

  • Newsom: aid to Israel 'should be conditional,' citing settler violence and Netanyahu's policies
  • He called the war in Gaza a 'moral catastrophe,' but did not specify which types of weapons should be subject to conditions
  • Growing Democratic resistance to arms shipments: a majority of Democratic senators voted against an arms sale in the spring, and more than 100 House members in July

Newsom's statement

California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Saturday that US military aid to Israel 'should be conditional,' describing this position as increasingly becoming a consensus of the Democratic Party. He made the remarks in an interview with the Washington Examiner while campaigning in New Hampshire amid a possible run in the 2028 presidential election.

Criticism of Netanyahu and the war in Gaza

Newsom cited settler violence in the occupied West Bank and the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which, he said, undermine the prospects of a two-state solution. 'Netanyahu has done an outstanding job of truly isolating himself from the rest of the world and increasingly from the American people,' he said, adding that 'the damage he has done is immeasurable.' He called Israel's war in Gaza a 'moral catastrophe,' but declined to specify which forms of military aid should be conditional, noting the distinction between defensive systems like the Iron Dome and offensive weapons. According to him, US aid should comply with human rights principles, including the Leahy framework — a 1997 federal rule prohibiting the US government from funding foreign military units credibly implicated, based on 'credible information,' in serious human rights violations.

Context and Democratic positions

The statement came amid growing Democratic resistance to arms shipments to Israel: in the spring, a majority of Democratic senators voted to block an arms sale, and in July more than 100 members of the House of Representatives opposed a separate bill. Israel is due to hold elections on October 27, which, in Newsom's view, could influence the discussion. He has previously criticized Netanyahu while expressing support for Israel: in 2023 he visited the country and met with survivors of the Hamas attack, and in March he called his own description of Israel as an 'apartheid state' his 'regret.'