Hundreds of Democratic staffers, many of whom served on President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign, are calling on the White House to “unequivocally condemn Israel’s killing of Palestinian civilians” and “take concrete steps to end the occupation in pursuit of justice, peace, and self-determination for Palestinians.”
The group, in an open letter that at press time featured more than 500 signatories, noted that the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict illustrated the quality of life differences between the two peoples.
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“While Israelis had to spend nights hiding in bomb shelters, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip had nowhere to hide,” the letter reads. “It is critical to acknowledge this power imbalance — that Israel’s highly-advanced military occupies the West Bank and East Jerusalem and blockades the Gaza Strip, creating an uninhabitable open-air prison.”
The group did commend Biden for brokering a ceasefire roughly two weeks after the start of this latest round of violence but claimed that “temporary peace is not a suitable long-term resolution” and urged him to take the following specific actions toward that end.
“Demand that the Israeli government:
- Allow a humanitarian corridor in Gaza to allow for the evacuation of the injured, as well as for the supply of life-saving medicines;
- Take action to protect Palestinians in Israel subject to ongoing violent attacks by Israeli mobs that operate with the protection of Israeli police;
- Lift the blockade of Gaza, which has made it an uninhabitable open-air prison;
- End the forced expulsions of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah and from all Palestinian homes across the territories;
- End settlement expansion in the West Bank;
- Join our international allies in calling for an end to Israeli violations of international law, or at minimum, stop obstructing efforts by the United Nations to do so;
- Ensure U.S. aid no longer funds the imprisonment and torture of Palestinian children, theft and demolition of Palestinian homes and property, and annexation of Palestinian land;
- Investigate whether Israel’s most recent assault on Gaza violates the Leahy Law, prohibiting U.S. military aid from funding foreign military units implicated in the commission of gross violations of human rights;
- End federal tax breaks for donations to settler organizations that actively fund the ongoing dispossession and expulsion of Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah and other cities by revoking their 501(c)3 status;
- Support Palestinians’ right to self-determination.”
The White House declined the Washington Examiner’s request for comment on the subject.
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You can read the entire letter on Medium.
