Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

We are almost one year into a horrific conflict in Gaza which followed the attack on Israel by Hamas. While we are unified in condemning that initial attack, the ongoing devastation being wreaked on both Gaza and the West Bank by Israel is unconscionable. A July report by The Lancet estimated a death toll in Gaza of over 186,000, while reports from the West Bank indicate that over 692 Palestinians have been killed, including 141 children. Estimates of those injured are even higher.
According to UN data, over 60% of homes, 80% of commercial facilities and 85% of school buildings in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Other sources report that at least 610 mosques and three churches have been destroyed. Only 17 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are functioning at all, and only with limited capability. Roads, wells, water treatment plants — all destroyed, and Israel has shut off access to electricity. Over 65% of cropland has been damaged; 1.9 million people have been displaced multiple times. Many, including children, are suffering from severe malnutrition; disease is running rampant because the Israeli military severely restricts humanitarian aid into the enclave.
In the West Bank, Israeli settlers rampage at will, destroying water wells, burning houses and assaulting families while the Israeli military does nothing to stop it.
In January, a ruling by the International Court of Justice stated that there is “plausible evidence” that what is happening in Gaza is a genocide. In July, the same court declared that Israel’s 57 year occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal, and called on nations around the world not to support the continuation of this situation.
Meanwhile, the United States continues to provide billions of dollars in arms assistance to Israel.
One estimate indicates that the US has sent over 50,000 tons of arms and military equipment to Israel since last October, courtesy of you and me: the US taxpayer.
As concerned citizens, we need to pressure our congressional representatives to support a meaningful ceasefire in this conflict, a return of all hostages and an embargo on further arms shipments to Israel. Such an embargo is clearly in line with US laws. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act stipulate that countries engaging in gross human rights violations shall be denied military assistance. Israel has been found to have committed such acts by the ICJ, the UN and even Israel’s own human rights experts.
Meanwhile, here in the US, freedom of speech is under assault. The Israeli narrative has dominated the American media for decades, and it’s time for our citizens and political leaders to listen to the Palestinian story. A “pro-Palestinian” perspective does not imply an “anti-Israel” one, nor is it antisemitic, as many claim. The charge of antisemitism should not be weaponized to shut down any opposition to the current Israeli narrative. True security for Israel and lasting peace will only come when there is justice for all Palestinians.
Anne Lipe
Richfield