Democrat calls on Biden to stop ‘racists’ in Israeli government from ‘land grab’

Senator Chris Van Hollen says president should reassess military aid to Israel in light of extreme rightward tilt of government

A leading Democratic senator has called on Joe Biden to get more personally engaged" in stopping racists" in the Israeli government from a land grab in the occupied territories and committing gross violations" of Palestinian rights or risk damage to the US's credibility.

After a visit to Israel and the West Bank last month, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland told the Guardian in an interview that the US president should begin by reassessing the US's huge military aid to Israel to prevent it from being used to facilitate annexation of the West Bank and oppression of the Palestinians, including the army's complicity in escalating settler violence against the Arab civilian population.