Progressive Democrats in the House on Friday called on the Biden administration to take steps to limit civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip after Israel’s military ordered an evacuation of the northern part of the enclave ahead of planned operations.
The letter addressed to President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, signed by 55 House members, comes as fellow Democrats condemned a number of statements their colleagues have made in the wake of 1,500 Hamas terrorists invading and attacking Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7.
The lawmakers’s letter expressed their concerns about the “unfolding humanitarian crisis in Gaza” as Israel responds to the terrorist attack by Hamas, which they acknowledged as “the worst perpetration of violence inflicted on the Jewish people since the Holocaust.”
“We strongly believe that Israel’s response must take into account the millions of innocent civilians in Gaza who themselves are victims of Hamas and are suffering the consequences of their terror campaign,” they added.
Shortly before midnight on Thursday, the Israeli military urged the relocation of all Gaza City civilians—more than 1 million people—from the enclave’s northern regions to the south within the next 24 hours “for their own safety.”
“Hamas terrorists are hiding in Gaza City inside tunnels underneath houses and inside buildings populated with innocent Gazan civilians,” the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) said in a statement.
“Civilians of Gaza City, evacuate south for your own safety and the safety of your families and distance yourself from Hamas terrorists who are using you as human shields.”
The Democrats, in their letter to President Biden, urged those involved in the coming military operations in Gaza City to adhere to international humanitarian law and protect innocent civilians on both sides.
The IDF’s statement noted that it will “make extensive efforts to avoid harming civilians” while it carries out significant operations in Gaza City in the coming days.
Rescuing Hostages
Hamas terrorists took hostages in its surprise attack on Israel’s southern kibbutz communities last weekend. The attack included a barrage of over 4,500 rockets and saw over 1,300 Israelis slaughtered and more than 3,000 injured.At least 2,800 lives on both sides of the border have been taken since the Hamas terrorist group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
The lawmakers’s letter condemned these acts.
In response to the attacks, the Israeli military has been targeting the vast underground network of tunnels in Gaza utilized by the Hamas terror group to carry out its attacks on Israel, according to the IDF, which says Gaza civilians cannot access the tunnels as bunkers for safety.
The IDF has said their intention is to “take all of Hamas’s military capabilities and strip them away.”
“Our intention is that Hamas will no longer have any ability to strike, harm, kill any Israeli civilians,” IDF spokesman Jonathan Conricus said.
Following the attack, Israel cut off Gaza from food, water, fuel, and medicine after the initial attack. The region’s access point to Egypt was also closed earlier this week as a result of airstrikes.
‘Hamas Is Not the Palestinian People’
The lawmakers laid out five requests for the Biden administration, including putting pressure on Israel to adhere to international law and urging Israel to restore the delivery of food, water, fuel, and electricity to Gaza.They also called on President Biden to work with regional partners to establish a humanitarian corridor to facilitate the delivery of essential supplies to the region. They specifically emphasized the need to evacuate Palestinian civilians, as well as others, including Americans, from Gaza.
The lawmakers called on President Biden to publicly discourage hate crimes against Muslims and Jews, and make clear that “Hamas is not the Palestinian people.” They also want any supplemental funding requests to Congress to include humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza.
The lawmakers stressed that they’re “deeply concerned” about Israel’s recent directive to evacuate northern Gaza. They also cited warnings from the United Nations that any “complete siege” of Gaza would violate international humanitarian law.
“The future and safety of Israelis and Palestinians are intertwined. We cannot achieve lasting peace and security for Israelis without addressing the humanitarian crises in Gaza and the West Bank,” the lawmakers wrote.
On Friday, President Biden said that U.S. officials are working with the governments of Israel, Egypt, Jordan, other Arab nations, and the United Nations to surge humanitarian aid for Gaza citizens.
“We can’t lose sight of the fact that the overwhelming majority of Palestinians have nothing to do with Hamas or Hamas’ appalling attacks, and they’re suffering as a result as well,” he said.
