Afghanistan

"Instead of taking on Ilhan, lawmakers should focus on injustice, human rights abuses, and acts of violence being committed at home and abroad," asserted Rep. Pramila Jayapal.

"Victims, their families, and the American public deserve far better than this."

In its new report, Action on Armed Violence urges states and others to "commit politically to stop using explosive weapons with wide area effects in populated areas."

"The real security challenges of today—from the climate crisis to global inequality—demand that we cut the Pentagon budget and invest instead in human needs," said one peace advocate who backed a letter to U.S. lawmakers.

"President Biden cannot have true credibility advocating for other countries to respect human rights if he does not prioritize closing Guantánamo."

"Americans do not fully understand, do not acknowledge, the sacrifices that allies made in Afghanistan," said the report's author.

"Schools should be safe havens for children, not zones of war."