Sanders Says AIPAC Plans to Spend $233 Million to Defeat Netanyahu Critics in US Elections

US Senator Bernie Sanders said the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, known as AIPAC, plans to spend $233 million to defeat political candidates critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, according to Anadolu Agency.

Sanders said the pro-Israel lobbying group had already spent $33 million in an unsuccessful effort to defeat Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan primary for a US Senate seat.

The claims, attributed to Sanders in the report, describe a pattern of spending by AIPAC aimed at shaping the outcome of congressional primary races involving candidates seen as critical of the Israeli government's policies.

AIPAC was not quoted in the available report responding directly to Sanders' figures or his characterization of its spending plans.

The report does not specify the full list of races or candidates AIPAC is said to be targeting with the described spending, beyond the Michigan primary involving El-Sayed.