Finally, a U.S. political party is being sensible about Israel’s deadly siege of Gaza—and, in a turn that should make Texans proud, that sense is coming from the Lone Star State.
On Saturday, the Texas State Democratic Committee issued a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Texas Democrats are the first statewide party in the U.S. to call for a ceasefire.
“There is no difference between the cries of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, and the senseless killings of innocent lives must come to an end,” party chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement on Saturday. “Texas Democratic Party leaders representing a broad and diverse network of coalitions and communities affected by all sides of this conflict are calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, Israel and the broader region—encouraging all parties to cease hostilities and prioritize the protection of civilian lives and the immediate release of all hostages following the Hamas-sponsored terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7th, 2023.”
On October 7, 2023, Hamas militants killed 1,200 Israelis, most of them civilians, in the largest attack on Jews since the Holocaust. Hamas also took roughly 240 people hostage, including young children.
Israel responded with an all-out assault in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, killing more than 15,000 people in airstrikes and a ground invasion, including around 6,000 children. Israel has also prevented food, water, and other supplies from entering Gaza, leaving the strip’s 2.3 million residents in danger of starvation and disease. Israeli officials have used genocidal rhetoric to justify the attack, including calling Palestinians “human animals.”
Israel and Hamas agreed to a temporary ceasefire from November 24 to November 30, during which both sides released hostages and prisoners. However, fighting has since resumed.
Along with Texas Democrats, an estimated three fourths of Democrats and half of Republicans support a ceasefire, according to a recent Reuters poll. Activists have held multiple protests across the U.S., with attendees like Wallace Shawn and Cynthia Nixon, and relatives of Israeli victims and hostages have denounced their government’s actions in Gaza.
Texas Democrats also called on Texan Governor Greg Abbott to take action against rising antisemitism and Islamophobia in the U.S., and encouraged Biden to pursue a permanent resolution to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
(featured image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
