Today, 5/5, Israel is continuing the barbaric assault on southern Gaza. Areas just east of Rafah are being bombed as I write this at 7:30 AM CT. It is not yet known the number who have been murdered and injured. This is only hours after Israel bombed multiple homes in Rafah itself. Approximately 1.4 million people, half of Gaza's entire population, are trapped in Rafah. Gaza was already a concentration death-camp pre 10/7, but now, with the population density, Rafah is one of the most densely populated areas in the entire world. There is no where for people to go. Israel is going to succeed in murdering and forcibly displacing survivors from Gaza entirely which has been the goal of their genocidal ethnical cleansing campaign since the beginning.
This all comes as the Israeli government banned Al Jazeera, one of the few news networks operating in Gaza and throughout occupied Palestinian providing much needed, non-biased, and independent coverage of Israel's crimes. Many other networks like CNN and even Israel's own Haaretz are beholden to the way the Israel requires reporting be done, under threats of revoking access to report the news. While absolutely disgusting, I'm not surprised. Even before 10/7, the most recent CI RIGHTS dataset from 2023 scoring all countries on internationally recognized human rights for all countries of the world shows the abysmal scoring of the freedom of the press in Israel.
I demand that you:
– Hold Israel accountable for a permanent, immediate ceasefire, their violations of the Genocide Convention, and gross human rights violations by any means necessary
– Call for the immediate end of Israel’s occupation and apartheid and support Palestinians in their fight for freedom and peace
– Secure the immediate release and safety of all Palestinians who have been abducted and held captive by Israel, including those whose indefinite detention began prior to 10/7
– Permanently end all monetary, diplomatic, and military aid given to Israel and enforce Leahy Law
– Reallocate all funds given to Israel and commit additional resources for ongoing humanitarian relief for Palestinians starting with immediately resuming funding of UNRWA
– Immediately withdraw all U.S. troops, military assets, and all other assets deployed throughout the Middle East and cease all actions that further escalate a larger regional conflict
– Pass legislation that voids all anti-BDS laws at the federal level
– Vote no on H.R. 7521 and any similar legislation proposed
