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No matter our religion or politics, we the undersigned all agree that Israel’s current assault on the Gaza Strip is unjustified, and the U.S. government must act to stop it. We are Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, agnostics, atheists, and more. We are voters, taxpayers, and citizens of the United States, the state of Kentucky, and the city of Louisville. We are your constituents. We humbly ask for your consideration, and most of all for your action.

Sincerely,

Dear Representative Yarmuth:

There are times when the citizens of a free nation feel compelled to speak out and to petition their elected representatives to address a cause of grave concern. At such a time, we have chosen to write to you, not only because you represent us in the United States Congress, but because we hold you in high esteem. You have demonstrated that you are a public servant of rare integrity, commitment, and courage. It is these qualities that we hope will move you to give our cause serious consideration, and then to act in accord with the moral imperatives animating our request.

The impetus for this letter is Israel’s recent assault on the Gaza Strip, and the humanitarian crisis it has caused. We believe it is incumbent upon the United States government to take action to end the current violence and address the needs of its victims. Consider the following points:

• Israel’s justification of its actions is one-sided and misleading. The firing of rockets on civilian areas from within the Gaza Strip is reprehensible, but it has not occurred in a vacuum. Israel has been guilty of its own crimes in the preceding months and years, including the following:
   
  • The Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem reports that since 2000, Israeli Defense Forces have killed at least 117 innocent civilians near the wall that cuts off the Gaza Strip from Israel, including several minors. Civilians have also often been killed in operations targeting militants. In 2008 alone, over 150 Gazans who did not take part in hostilities were killed by Israeli Defense Forces, including over 50 minors.
     
  • After the Israeli military withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, the Israeli government claimed it was no longer responsible for the well-being of the people there, despite maintaining complete control of the Strip’s air and sea space, the movement of all goods and people to and from the Strip, and the fuel and gas supply. In 2006, Israel bombed Gaza’s only independent power station, thereby rendering residents completely dependent on Israel for electricity. These conditions have led to a crippled economy, a lack of basic goods and necessities, and extremely high levels of poverty and unemployment.
     
  • Israel violated the recent cease-fire and has repeatedly rejected offers of a truce. According to U.N. Special Rapporteur Richard Falk:

    Hamas has repeatedly proposed long-term truces with Israel and offered to negotiate a permanent truce. During the last cease-fire... Hamas upheld the truce although Israel refused to ease the blockade. It was Israel that, on Nov. 4, initiated an armed attack that violated the truce and killed six Palestinians. It was only then that Hamas resumed firing rockets at Israel.

    The Israeli press has reported that a security official told the Israeli cabinet as recently as December 21 that “Hamas is interested in continuing the truce,” provided the blockade be lifted and the ceasefire extended to the West Bank. Clearly, the cabinet rejected this offer.
     
• The scale of Israel’s assault has dramatically raised the level of violence in the region and caused devastating harm to Gaza’s civilian population. According to B’Tselem, “from June 2004 to the end of 2007, eleven Israelis, four of them minors, were killed by Qassam rockets fired by Palestinians.” As of January 7, over 670 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s current assault on the Gaza Strip, including more than 300 civilians and over 130 children, according to some reports. The number of wounded is close to 3,000. Gaza’s main hospital has been overwhelmed, and critical supplies are running low. There can be no justification for this level of destruction.
   
• Israel has been the recipient of billions of dollars worth of military aid from the U.S. government. From U.S.-made F16 fighter jets and Apache helicopters to tank components, bombs, and missiles, this assault has largely been paid for with our tax dollars. This is in violation of existing U.S. law, including the Arms Export Control Act, which stipulates that recipients of U.S. weapons cannot use them against civilians, and must use them only for “legitimate self-defense.” Rather than hold Israel accountable, the U.S. has unilaterally blocked action by the United Nations Security Council, standing virtually alone in the international community in its refusal to condemn Israel’s actions. It is a gross violation of the dictates of our conscience that our tax dollars are financing the devastation of Gaza, and that our government offers its implicit support through its silence.

This is why we write to you, Congressman. In view of the utter inadequacy of Israel’s justification for its assault on the Gaza Strip, the sheer scale of the attack and terribleness of its consequences, and our responsibility as U.S. taxpayers, we ask that you:

• Vote against any and all resolutions and bills providing material or symbolic support for Israel’s actions,
   
• Condemn actions on all sides that unnecessarily put civilian lives at risk,
   
• Sponsor legislation to end military aid to Israel,
   
• Take any and all actions within your power to influence Israel to allow additional humanitarian aid into Gaza, and
   
• Work diligently toward an immediate ceasefire, the lifting of the blockade against Gaza, and a lasting peace agreement.

No matter our religion or politics, we the undersigned all agree that Israel’s current assault on the Gaza Strip is unjustified, and the U.S. government must act to stop it. We are Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, agnostics, atheists, and more. We are voters, taxpayers, and citizens of the United States, the state of Kentucky, and the city of Louisville. We are your constituents. We humbly ask for your consideration, and most of all for your action.

Sincerely,

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