Friends,
The Netanyahu government’s ongoing restriction of food and medical supplies to families in Gaza continues to be a searing violation of our Jewish and liberal democratic values.
This week, I’ve been on the ground in Israel. Our staff here continue to work with the Hostage Family’s Forum every day, and join deeply moving hostage freedom rallies and protests. At the same time, we know the Netanyahu approach to humanitarian aid brings the hostages no closer to freedom and this conflict no closer to ending.
While pressure from President Biden following the World Central Kitchen tragedy resulted in new commitments on humanitarian aid, the Netanyahu government could have made most of these policy changes months ago and must now do more to actually follow through.
Humanitarian groups like José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen can’t operate safely. Doctors are battling shortages of antibiotics and life-saving medicine. Surgeons operate without anesthesia. Over 1 million people remain on a path toward famine within weeks. We cannot accept this.
This week, Congressman Jason Crow – a leading national security voice – is gathering signatures for a letter calling on President Biden to take “all conceivable steps” to uphold US law, press Netanyahu further on aid, and get food and medical supplies to desperate families in Gaza.
J Street is proud to be backing this letter and rallying support on Capitol Hill – and we need your help. If you have a moment now, please sign our petition to Congress to help build momentum and join this campaign >>
A battlefield veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, Congressman Crow knows better than most that a humanitarian catastrophe is also a security nightmare – making the fight against insurgents and terror groups like Hamas that much harder.
He knows that upholding our laws and values is not just a moral question, but serves our own interests too. That we cannot watch as famine spreads, children suffer, and the homeland for the Jewish people fails to live up to both our shared values and its founding ideals.
Israeli security leaders know that too: Commanders for Israel’s Security – a group representing hundreds of former security officials, including former heads of the IDF and Mossad – has said, “beyond the moral aspects,” the Netanyahu government’s aid restrictions have dealt “cumulative damage to Israel’s security and strategic interests” and made the IDF’s goals harder to achieve.
We know US pressure can have an impact. We know obstructing aid is a violation of US law and of President Biden’s own national security regulations. We know – as the White House itself has said – that Netanyahu continues to fall short of his obligations.
Friends: If you want the Biden Administration to speak clearly and push harder, please add your name to our petition now >>
As the letter to President Biden says, “despite repeated requests by your Administration over the past several months, the Netanyahu government has resisted efforts to open sufficient land and sea routes for aid into Gaza; failed to facilitate the entry of enough humanitarian aid to prevent the civilian population from facing famine; denied humanitarian access requests; and enforced arbitrary restrictions on humanitarian goods.”
“The Netanyahu government must implement an exhaustive, sustained effort to counteract the harm caused by its own restrictive policies,” it says. “So long as Israel restricts, directly or indirectly, the facilitation of humanitarian aid delivery into Gaza, the Israeli government is risking its eligibility for further offensive security assistance.”
Friends: If you agree, please add your name to help rally support. Read, sign and share the petition here >>
On a personal note, I want to thank you for standing with us. I’m writing from Israel, where I’m visiting family, joining hostage memorials and mass protests, and speaking with our Israeli staff and allies.
José Andrés wrote that he knows Israelis. That when it comes to humanitarian aid, it’s time for the best of Israel to show up. I can assure you that the best is still here, fighting harder than ever, but that we need to have their backs.
I’ve been truly inspired by Israeli coexistence and human rights advocates who continue to courageously stand up for our shared values, and truly appalled by members of the Netanyahu government egging on protesters who continue to actively block humanitarian aid trucks headed for Gaza.
As an Israeli-American myself, it’s especially painful to see this being done in my name. I hope you can join us as we build support for this urgent letter.
Read, sign and share the petition here >>
Thank you sincerely, for your support.
Adina Vogel Ayalon
Vice President and Chief of Staff, J Street
