The ground invasion of Rafah could turn into a "bloodbath," according to the World Health Organization.

Hi,

More than 600,000 Palestinians have fled the southern Gaza city of Rafah over the past week to escape a ground invasion of this tiny enclave on the Egyptian border.1

Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces have escalated attacks elsewhere in Gaza, including bombing the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, where some of those fleeing Rafah had just taken shelter.2

And with parts of Gaza in "full-blown famine," Israel has shut down the two remaining border crossings that aid organizations had been using to deliver food, water, and medicine.3,4

President Biden has the leverage to demand a ceasefire — and he's begun using it, temporarily withholding some offensive weapons to prevent an attack on Rafah. But we need to keep making our voices heard and demand that President Biden listen to the majority of Americans who support a ceasefire in Gaza and don't want to fund further attacks on civilians.

Will you donate $10 to help support our work, including urging President Biden to use his leverage to stop the ground invasion of Rafah and demand a ceasefire?

Donate $10

Donate $20

Donate $40

Or, donate another amount

The scale of human suffering in Gaza is truly unfathomable.

According to the U.N., an estimated 35,000 people have been killed, the majority women and children.5 An additional 10,000 or more are missing and presumed dead in the rubble.6

Meanwhile, virtually the entire population of Gaza is now suffering from malnutrition, with 1.1 million at risk of death by starvation within the next two months.7

With the health care infrastructure of Gaza in shambles and nowhere else to go, the World Health Organization warns that a ground invasion of Rafah would be a "bloodbath" for civilians, children, and aid workers.8

President Biden can halt this ongoing tragedy and compel Israel to come back to the negotiating table by withholding the billions in military aid authorized by Congress. But Republicans and Democratic pro-Israel war hawks are all pressuring President Biden to drop his objections and resume providing unlimited, unrestricted military aid to Benjamin Netanyahu immediately.9

That's why it's so critical that we make our voices heard now. Demand Progress Action has mobilized tens of thousands of people to call their members of Congress and sign petitions demanding a ceasefire.

Please donate $10 to support our work, including urging President Biden to withhold military aid to Israel until Benjamin Netanyahu calls off the invasion of Rafah and reopens border crossings to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.

With gratitude,

The team at Demand Progress Action

Sources:
1. U.N. News, "Gaza: 600,000 displaced from Rafah," May 15, 2024.
2. Middle East Eye, "War on Gaza: Israeli bombing kills 40 in Nuseirat as Jabalia and Rafah fighting rages," May 14, 2024.
3. The New York Times, "Parts of Gaza in 'Full-Blown Famine,' U.N. Aid Official Says," May 4, 2024.
4. The New York Times, "Israel's Closures of 2 Gaza Border Crossings Prompt Alarm Over Humanitarian Aid," May 7, 2024.
5. CNN, "UN says total number of deaths in Gaza remains unchanged after controversy over revised data," May 14, 2024.
6. Reuters, "Gaza death toll: how many Palestinians has Israel's campaign killed," May 14, 2024.
7. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, "Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel — reported impact," May 6, 2024.
8. World Health Organization, "Rafah incursion would substantially increase mortality and morbidity and further weaken an already broken health system," May 3, 2024.
9. Axios, "Congress plans all-out brawl with Biden over pausing Israel arms transfers," May 11, 2024.

PAID FOR BY DEMAND PROGRESS (DemandProgress.org) and not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. Contributions are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. Join our online community on Facebook or Twitter.

You can unsubscribe from this list at any time.