Reuters
WASHINGTON – Republican and Democratic U.S. senators introduced legislation on Thursday to provide $3.3 billion in annual aid to Israel, seeking to put into law an aid agreement between the two countries reached in 2016 amid concern over rising Middle East tensions.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Coons co-sponsored the bill, a standalone provision of a broader measure that stalled a year ago, according to a text of the bill seen by Reuters.
The measure that stalled last year included some provisions broadly supported by members of both parties, including the aid, but it also included a plank that would have let state and local governments punish Americans for boycotting Israel. Opponents, including many Democrats, saw that provision as an impingement of free speech.
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