A medical team from the Palestine Red Crescent Society administers polio vaccines to children at Al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza on August 22, 2024.
Tlaib Says She Is 'Ashamed of Our Country Looking Away' as Gaza Faces Polio Crisis
"We don't want your thoughts and prayers. We need action," said Rep. Rashida Tlaib.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the lone Palestinian American in the U.S. Congress, said Friday that she is "so saddened and ashamed of our country looking away and pretending they are trying to stop this madness" after the World Health Organization confirmed that a 10-month-old child in Gaza was paralyzed by polio.
"The first case of polio in more than 25 years, but no one will care because the baby is Palestinian," Tlaib (D-Mich.) lamented. "We don't want your thoughts and prayers. We need action."
Tlaib's comments came hours after U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris closed out the Democratic National Convention with a speech that acknowledged the "heartbreaking" suffering in Gaza without clearly identifying the perpetrators—the far-right Israeli government and its main arms supplier, the United States—or pledging to break with President Joe Biden's unwavering support for Israel.
"Vice President Harris has said that she supports a cease-fire in Gaza," Abbas Alawieh, co-founder of the Uncommitted National Movement, said in a statement Friday. "But a cease-fire cannot happen as long as the U.S. continues supplying the bombs used to kill people we love.
The Biden administration has continued to transfer lethal weaponry to the Israeli military even amid overwhelming evidence that the country's forces are using the arms to commit atrocities in Gaza, wiping out entire families and civilian infrastructure. Israel's blockade, meanwhile, is suffocating the enclave's population, forcing children to search rotting garbage for food as famine takes hold across the territory.
Last month, the already dire humanitarian emergency became even more grave after health officials detected poliovirus in sewage samples at several locations in southern and central Gaza.
On August 16, Gaza's health ministry confirmed that an unvaccinated 10-month-child in Deir al-Balah contracted polio; the World Health Organization said earlier this week that the child was partially paralyzed by the disease, for which there is no known cure.
A coalition of aid agencies and medical professionals warned Tuesday that "without immediate action, an entire generation is at risk of infection, and hundreds of children face paralysis by a highly communicable disease that can be prevented with a simple vaccine."
An urgent vaccination drive is underway, but the effort has been made extremely difficult and dangerous by relentless Israeli bombing.
Over the past 48 hours, Israeli attacks have killed at least 69 Gazans and wounded 212 more, according to the enclave's health ministry.
Al Jazeera reported Saturday that "a woman and a young girl are among those killed in Israel's latest attack on the Bureij refugee camp."
"Their bodies, along with other children wounded by the assault, have been rushed to al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp," the outlet added. "Footage from the hospital, verified by Al Jazeera's fact-checking agency Sanad, shows several bloodied children receiving treatment, while a man weeps over the body of a deceased child."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the lone Palestinian American in the U.S. Congress, said Friday that she is "so saddened and ashamed of our country looking away and pretending they are trying to stop this madness" after the World Health Organization confirmed that a 10-month-old child in Gaza was paralyzed by polio.
"The first case of polio in more than 25 years, but no one will care because the baby is Palestinian," Tlaib (D-Mich.) lamented. "We don't want your thoughts and prayers. We need action."
Tlaib's comments came hours after U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris closed out the Democratic National Convention with a speech that acknowledged the "heartbreaking" suffering in Gaza without clearly identifying the perpetrators—the far-right Israeli government and its main arms supplier, the United States—or pledging to break with President Joe Biden's unwavering support for Israel.
"Vice President Harris has said that she supports a cease-fire in Gaza," Abbas Alawieh, co-founder of the Uncommitted National Movement, said in a statement Friday. "But a cease-fire cannot happen as long as the U.S. continues supplying the bombs used to kill people we love.
The Biden administration has continued to transfer lethal weaponry to the Israeli military even amid overwhelming evidence that the country's forces are using the arms to commit atrocities in Gaza, wiping out entire families and civilian infrastructure. Israel's blockade, meanwhile, is suffocating the enclave's population, forcing children to search rotting garbage for food as famine takes hold across the territory.
Last month, the already dire humanitarian emergency became even more grave after health officials detected poliovirus in sewage samples at several locations in southern and central Gaza.
On August 16, Gaza's health ministry confirmed that an unvaccinated 10-month-child in Deir al-Balah contracted polio; the World Health Organization said earlier this week that the child was partially paralyzed by the disease, for which there is no known cure.
A coalition of aid agencies and medical professionals warned Tuesday that "without immediate action, an entire generation is at risk of infection, and hundreds of children face paralysis by a highly communicable disease that can be prevented with a simple vaccine."
An urgent vaccination drive is underway, but the effort has been made extremely difficult and dangerous by relentless Israeli bombing.
Over the past 48 hours, Israeli attacks have killed at least 69 Gazans and wounded 212 more, according to the enclave's health ministry.
Al Jazeera reported Saturday that "a woman and a young girl are among those killed in Israel's latest attack on the Bureij refugee camp."
"Their bodies, along with other children wounded by the assault, have been rushed to al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp," the outlet added. "Footage from the hospital, verified by Al Jazeera's fact-checking agency Sanad, shows several bloodied children receiving treatment, while a man weeps over the body of a deceased child."
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the lone Palestinian American in the U.S. Congress, said Friday that she is "so saddened and ashamed of our country looking away and pretending they are trying to stop this madness" after the World Health Organization confirmed that a 10-month-old child in Gaza was paralyzed by polio.
"The first case of polio in more than 25 years, but no one will care because the baby is Palestinian," Tlaib (D-Mich.) lamented. "We don't want your thoughts and prayers. We need action."
Tlaib's comments came hours after U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris closed out the Democratic National Convention with a speech that acknowledged the "heartbreaking" suffering in Gaza without clearly identifying the perpetrators—the far-right Israeli government and its main arms supplier, the United States—or pledging to break with President Joe Biden's unwavering support for Israel.
"Vice President Harris has said that she supports a cease-fire in Gaza," Abbas Alawieh, co-founder of the Uncommitted National Movement, said in a statement Friday. "But a cease-fire cannot happen as long as the U.S. continues supplying the bombs used to kill people we love.
The Biden administration has continued to transfer lethal weaponry to the Israeli military even amid overwhelming evidence that the country's forces are using the arms to commit atrocities in Gaza, wiping out entire families and civilian infrastructure. Israel's blockade, meanwhile, is suffocating the enclave's population, forcing children to search rotting garbage for food as famine takes hold across the territory.
Last month, the already dire humanitarian emergency became even more grave after health officials detected poliovirus in sewage samples at several locations in southern and central Gaza.
On August 16, Gaza's health ministry confirmed that an unvaccinated 10-month-child in Deir al-Balah contracted polio; the World Health Organization said earlier this week that the child was partially paralyzed by the disease, for which there is no known cure.
A coalition of aid agencies and medical professionals warned Tuesday that "without immediate action, an entire generation is at risk of infection, and hundreds of children face paralysis by a highly communicable disease that can be prevented with a simple vaccine."
An urgent vaccination drive is underway, but the effort has been made extremely difficult and dangerous by relentless Israeli bombing.
Over the past 48 hours, Israeli attacks have killed at least 69 Gazans and wounded 212 more, according to the enclave's health ministry.
Al Jazeera reported Saturday that "a woman and a young girl are among those killed in Israel's latest attack on the Bureij refugee camp."
"Their bodies, along with other children wounded by the assault, have been rushed to al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp," the outlet added. "Footage from the hospital, verified by Al Jazeera's fact-checking agency Sanad, shows several bloodied children receiving treatment, while a man weeps over the body of a deceased child."