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For Immediate Release
January, 17 2025, 02:39pm EDT
Contact:
press@sanders.senate.gov
With Gaza Ceasefire Near, Sanders Statement on What U.S. Must Learn from Its Role in the Horrific Tragedy
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement ahead of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which is poised to begin on Sunday:
I am pleased that the Israeli security cabinet has finally approved a ceasefire agreement. My hope is that the destruction will soon end and that the hostages will finally be returned to their families. Sadly, the deal approved today is essentially the same agreement that Prime Minister Netanyahu and his extremist government rejected in May of last year. More than 10,000 people have died since that proposal was presented, and the suffering of the hostages and innocent people in Gaza only deepened.
Let’s be clear: On October 7, 2023, Hamas and its late leader, Yahya Sinwar, committed a barbaric terrorist attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 innocent people and took 250 hostages. Israel clearly had the right to defend itself against Hamas. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is correct in indicting Mr. Sinwar as a war criminal for these atrocities.
Tragically, Israel chose not to go to war simply against Hamas, but has instead waged an all-out war against the entire Palestinian people. In a Gazan population of 2.2 million, more than 46,000 people have been killed and 110,000 injured, according to the United Nations. A peer-reviewed study in the medical journal Lancet concludes that the total is much higher, with some 64,000 Palestinians killed. The vast majority of those dead are women and children.
But it’s not just the horrific loss of human life we must contend with. Netanyahu’s war machine has damaged or destroyed two-thirds of all structures in Gaza, including 92 percent of the housing units. Most hospitals and primary healthcare facilities have been bombed, leaving Gazans without basic medical care. The civilian infrastructure has been devastated, including 70 percent of water and sanitation plants. Every one of Gaza’s 12 universities has been bombed, as have hundreds of schools. There has been no electricity in Gaza for 15 months. And Israel’s restrictions on humanitarian aid have left tens of thousands of children facing malnutrition and starvation. Netanyahu has overseen these policies, and the ICC is right to indict him as a war criminal, alongside Mr. Sinwar.
As this horrific war hopefully comes to an end, the suffering of the Palestinian people remains. This ceasefire is just the first step. Massive amounts of humanitarian aid must immediately reach starving, malnourished people in Gaza. The UN must be granted unfettered access to the Gaza Strip. The international community must insist that the ceasefire be made permanent. Credible plans for rebuilding Gaza must be laid out. Peaceful governance must be established, with the Palestinian people in control.
Finally, as Americans, we must grapple with our role in this dark chapter. The United States allowed this mass atrocity to continue by providing an endless supply of weapons to Netanyahu and failing to exert meaningful leverage. This blanket military support took place in clear violation of U.S. and international law. This must not happen again. Future political leaders should learn from this terrible lesson and restore respect for our own laws and moral principles.
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