As 1.5 million Palestinians have sheltered in or near Rafah – a city with a pre-war population of 250,00 – Israel has again betrayed their professed intentions to the Palestinian civilians and bombed this supposed refuge.
The Israeli government has continually pushed Palestinian civilians south in their war on Gaza, all the while floating plans for an Israeli resettlement of Gaza and strictly limiting the humanitarian aid allowed into the region. Just two weeks ago, there was a conference on Gaza's resettlement attended by members of Netanyahu's cabinet, including National Security Minister Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Smotrich.
President Biden has called for the civilians in Rafah to be protected, and has reportedly called Netanyahu an "asshole" over three times in the past days of bombing in Rafah, which has led to the deaths of a hundred people in the region, many of them children. However, Netanyahu has refused to call off this offensive.
This is part of a wider pattern of uncontrollable and cruel behavior from Netanyahu, who has publicly refused a two-state solution in Israel and shows every sign of going in an increasingly extremist direction in his attitude towards the Palestinian people. In private, Netanyahu has emphasised his ability to control U.S. public opinion about Israel, and bragged about being able to bend our government to his will.
We cannot be ruled by overseas right-wing dictators. Just today, our senate passed a bill which included $14 billion to fund Israel's war effort, with under $10 billion for humanitarian aid in conflict zones. It is unlikely this bill passes the house, but it nevertheless reveals the misguided priorities of our senate. We must make military aid conditional, and we must advocate loudly for a ceasefire.
No Dem Left Behind has always been on the side of peace, and we have continually stood for a two-state solution in Israel and Palestine. We believe all human life is of equal value, and we stand against anyone looking to harm civilian life. The U.S. cannot be complicit in the systematic elimination of the Palestinians.
