As Israel continues its bombardment of Gaza following the October 7 attack by Hamas that killed about 1,200 people, including the taking of 240 hostages, a group of lawmakers wrote a letter to President Biden and Secretary Blinken on Wednesday expressing their concern about the escalating violence in the region. They site the growing civilian casualties writing, “the Israeli Defense Forces have killed over 11,078 Palestinians, nearly half of whom have been children.”
The two dozen members write that, “without an immediate cessation of hostilities and the establishment of a robust bilateral ceasefire, this war will lead to a further loss of civilian life and risk dragging the United States into dangerous and unwise conflict with armed groups across the Middle East. Further, we write urging clarity on your strategic objectives for achieving de-escalation and stability in the region.”
The letter calling for a ceasefire in Gaza was signed by the following Members of Congress:
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Betty McCollum
Mark Pocan
Rashida Tlaib
Cori Bush
James P. McGovern
Mary Gay Scanlon
Raúl M. Grijalva
Pramila Jayapal
Joaquin Castro
Delia C. Ramirez
Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr.
Greg Casar
Jesús G. “Chuy” García
Bonnie Watson Coleman
Nydia M. Velázquez
Ayanna Pressley
Jonathan L. Jackson
Barbara Lee
André Carson
Jamaal Bowman, Ed.D.
Summer Lee
Veronica Escobar
Ilhan Omar
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