MILITARY/WAR
Around 300 Arrested At US Capitol Complex As Jewish Protesters Call For Ceasefire In Israel
@FordFischer/X
Some 300 people were arrested Wednesday during a large protest on Capitol Hill calling for an immediate ceasefire in Israel, where the Gaza Strip has been under bombardment since Hamas militants launched an attack on Oct. 7.
The demonstration, led by the Jewish anti-Zionist groups Jewish Voice for Peace and If Not Now, saw hundreds of protesters in and around Capitol buildings, including some who occupied the rotunda of the Cannon House Office Building.
The protesters sang and prayed, holding signs that read, Never Again Is Now and Ceasefire and wearing shirts that read, Not in our name and Jews say cease fire now.
According to Capitol Police, the arrests were made among those who were inside the building.
Demonstrations are not allowed inside Congressional Buildings, Capitol Police posted on X, formerly Twitter. We warned the protestors to stop demonstrating and when they did not comply we began arresting them.
Over 390 congresspeople have co-sponsored a resolution supporting the Israeli military, and calling to send weapons to the same country whose politicians have already dropped more than 6,000 bombs on a captive population, Jewish Voice for Peace wrote on its blog.
In order to justify this indefensible violence, the U.S. is breaking out the full post-9/11 playbook of repression and intimidation … to silence and intimidate anyone who stands against Israels attempt at genocide in Gaza, the group wrote.
We refuse to let our grief be used to justify the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, If Not Now said in a statement. Our leaders must step up — stop the war and demand de-escalation now.
In a surprise incursion on Oct. 7, Hamas militants launched thousands of rockets into Israel to cover gunmen breaking through the Gaza border fence and violently taking control of multiple towns and villages, killing hundreds of men, women and children, and capturing hostages.
Israel formally declared war on Oct. 8, and in the ensuing bombardment and siege, all food, water and fuel supplies were cut off from the Gaza Strip. More than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, a 25-mile fenced-in strip along the Mediterranean Sea, have been under blockade by Israel and neighboring Egypt since 2007, after Hamas took over the territory.
The United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees, UNRWA, reported a dire humanitarian crisis with its operations on the verge of collapse, as hundreds of thousands of displaced Gazans sought shelter.
President Joe Biden returned from a one-day trip to Israel Wednesday having pledged U.S. military support for the country and secured apparent commitments from Israel and Egypt to let humanitarian aid into southern Gaza after repairs are made at the Rafah crossing.
Later this week, Im going to ask the United States Congress for an unprecedented support package for Israels defense. We are going to keep Iron Dome fully supplied so it can continue standing sentinel over Israeli skies, saving Israeli lives, Biden said during remarks in Tel Aviv Wednesday.
The U.S. has already moved two carrier strike groups, additional air assets, and other military assistance to the region.
More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, most in the initial Oct. 7 attack, according to the latest update from the Israel Defense Forces. According to Israeli sources, more than 1,000 Hamas militants and other Palestinians have been killed outside Gaza.
Within the Gaza Strip, meanwhile, more than 3,400 Palestinians have been killed, and more than 12,000 have been injured, according to the latest update from the Gaza Ministry of Health, which said those numbers only account for deaths and injuries confirmed at hospitals. A further 1,300 have been reported missing under the rubble.
The death toll is already the highest of the five Gaza wars, including the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted more than six weeks.
TMX contributed to this article.
