More than two dozen House members cite risks of miscalculation and escalation in active conflict
WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than two dozen U.S. House members are demanding that Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly disclose the full extent of Israel’s nuclear weapons capabilities, warning that the Biden administration’s policy of “official ambiguity” is dangerously untenable as the United States and Israel wage a joint war against Iran.
In a letter dated May 4, 2026, led by Reps. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) and Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), 29 lawmakers pressed Rubio to answer 11 specific questions about Israel’s nuclear arsenal, including warhead counts, delivery systems, fissile material production at the Dimona facility, and any red lines or thresholds for nuclear use communicated to U.S. officials.
“The risks of miscalculation, escalation, and nuclear use in this environment are not theoretical,” the lawmakers wrote. “American service members continue to be deployed throughout the region.”
‘Fighting Side by Side’
The letter notes that the United States and Israel launched their offensive against Iran on February 28, 2026, conducting joint air operations over Iranian territory. It describes a volatile regional nuclear landscape: Russia and China aligned with Iran; Pakistan armed with nuclear weapons and bound by a mutual defense pact with Saudi Arabia; and Israel’s own Dimona nuclear complex targeted by Iranian strikes.
“We are, in the fullest sense, fighting this war side by side with a country whose potential nuclear weapons program the United States government officially refuses to acknowledge,” the lawmakers wrote.
The signatories argue that such silence undermines coherent nonproliferation policy, pointing to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s 2023 statement that if Iran developed a nuclear weapon, “we will have to get one.”
‘A Direct Acknowledgment’
The letter catalogs years of public evidence supporting the conclusion that Israel possesses nuclear weapons. It cites the 1986 disclosures by Dimona technician Mordechai Vanunu, a declassified 1974 Special National Intelligence Estimate concluding that “Israel already has produced nuclear weapons,” and then-Defense Secretary-designate Robert Gates’ 2006 sworn Senate testimony naming Israel among nations with nuclear weapons.
The lawmakers also note that Israeli officials themselves have broken official ambiguity, including Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s 2006 listing of Israel alongside nuclear powers and a 2023 radio interview in which Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu called dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza “one of the possibilities.”
Undersecretary ‘Could Not Answer’
The push follows a March 25, 2026, House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing in which Undersecretary of State for Arms Control Thomas DiNanno told Rep. Castro he could not answer a similar question about Israel’s nuclear capabilities.
“What are the specific restrictions on Undersecretary DiNanno answering such a question?” the lawmakers now ask. They further request all documentation governing State Department employees’ ability to discuss Israeli nuclear weapons.
The letter gives Rubio until May 18, 2026, to respond fully. It concludes with an offer to address any legal impediments through legislation, citing the Hyde Act, which created an exemption for India.
“We cannot develop coherent nonproliferation policy for the Middle East,” the lawmakers wrote, “while maintaining a policy of official silence about the nuclear weapons capabilities of one party central to the ongoing conflict in which the United States is a direct participant.”
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter.
