Killing In The Name Of...Profits
Melissa Garriga
Next month marks a grim anniversary—the first year of Israel's recent genocidal campaign in Gaza. Yet, despite mounting evidence of Israel's crimes against humanity, the U.S. government remains complicit. Vice President Kamala Harris recently stated she would not support an arms embargo against Israel. At the same time, the State Department simultaneously notified Congress of a new $20 billion weapons deal with the very government responsible for murdering tens of thousands of innocent people.
In a statement regarding the arms sale, a Pentagon representative said, "The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability."
But is the murder of over 40,000 people, a majority of which are women and children, self-defense? Was killing Medo Hamily, a 19-year-old whose social media broadcasts brought attention to the grim reality of Gaza under siege self-defense? Hamily was merely seeking solace on the beach. Was the murder of the young girl rollerblading for a fleeting moment of joy self-defense?
In Gaza, death is inescapable. In the United States, those deaths are soaring profits. Parents return home from registering newborns only to find their infants martyred. Families waiting for food or seeking refuge in tents are targeted. They are all nothing but an end to justify the profitable means of the weapons industry. We should all be outraged.
The new $20 billion arms deal isn't about self-defense but blood money.
The fighter jets included in the sale—F-15s—will hover ominously over Gaza, reminding Palestinian children that death is ever-present. These jets aren't being used for defense; they are being used to obliterate families who are seeking safety in refugee tents.
This week, Israel committed one of the most horrific massacres in the past 11 months in Al-Mawasi. Israel killed at least 40 people sheltering in place in a designated "safe zone." Those murders were made possible by U.S.-made bombs.
Israel dropped at least one 2,000lb MARK 84 bomb on families who were only protected by make-shift tents in the Al Mawasi humanitarian zone. The United States has sent 14,000 of these bombs since October.
If you are wondering how our elected officials can continue wholeheartedly supporting this, the answer is easy. The weapons lobby has more influence in Washington than the very lawmakers we elect, dwarfing even Congress itself in size and power. These lobbyists ensure the U.S. is committed to conflict, keeping military budgets bloated and weapons contracts flowing. Every bomb dropped, and every bullet fired represents profit for these corporations.
President Eisenhower warned us in 1961 about the military-industrial complex. He foresaw the dangers of a war machine driven by profit, and today, we're living his predicted nightmare. The Pentagon's budget is nearing $1 trillion, a colossal sum largely outspends essential services like education. Over half of this budget—hundreds of billions of dollars—goes directly into the pockets of private companies, cementing the arms industry's stranglehold on American policy.
There is a revolving door between the Pentagon and the defense industry that ensures this toxic relationship is sustained. Lloyd Austin, the current Secretary of Defense, sat on the board of Raytheon before assuming his role at the Pentagon. His prior ties to one of the largest defense contractors raise serious questions about where his loyalties truly lie. How can someone entrusted with protecting American lives and values be expected to prioritize peace when their past and future are entangled with the arms industry?
This corruption isn't abstract—it's a matter of life and death. It isn't a chart showing profit margins; it is a refugee camp being turned into a crater, reducing life into rubble. As Gaza burns, the U.S. provides the fire while the arms industry reaps the rewards. Americans, too, pay the price—not only in dollars but in the moral degradation of our nation as it becomes complicit in one of the most egregious human rights violations of our time.
How does being the purveyor of such evil make us safe? How can we justify a 2000 lb bomb against a 20 lb unarmed child?
We must end this cycle. It's time for the U.S. to stop providing weapons to this genocidal regime. An arms embargo on Israel is not only necessary—it is an ethical imperative. We can no longer stand by as innocent civilians are slaughtered with weapons funded by our government. The military-industrial complex, which props up both our endless wars and Israel's brutal occupation, must be dismantled.
Stop the $20 Billion Weapons Sale to Israel!
Melissa Garriga is the communications and media relations manager for CODEPINK. She writes about the intersection of militarism and the human cost of war.