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2/13 Petition to Biden & U.S. Congress

As of 2/13, approximately 28,200 – 35,000 Palestinians have been murdered by Israel since 10/7. For the sake of assuming you aren’t a genocidal maniac, I’ll lay it out really simply for you. Your continued funding of, diplomatic cover for, and support of Israel means you are providing material support to terrorists. Oxford defines terrorism as “the calculated use of violence or threat of violence to inculcate fear…to coerce or intimidate…societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological.” Cambridge defines violence as “actions or words that are intended to hurt people”.

There are countless examples of terroristic acts, but for the sake of brevity, let’s examine the multiple times Israel has dropped leaflets on Gaza with threats of violence. Around 11/4 a message was dropped telling civilians if they came “within 300 meters” of the Israeli border they would be murdered, but there is no clear indicator on the ground of what this border actually is. On 12/7, Israel dropped leaflets with a quote from the Quran, mocking and terrorizing Palestinians with threats of destroying the water infrastructure, which they have since done. Most recently, on 1/20, Israel sent a message “You want to return home?” with instructions on how to “report Hamas” – a clear threat that they would continue to destroy residential areas, which they have also continued to do.

Then, the most recent act of terror – the Rafah Superbowl massacres. Stop Israel’s reign of terror now.

I demand that you: 

– Call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and all other areas of occupied-Palestine

– Call for the immediate end of Israel’s occupation and apartheid brutally imposed on Palestine, and support Palestinians in their fight for freedom and peace

– Hold Israel accountable for their war crimes and violations of the Genocide Convention and other international laws

– 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

– Immediately resume funding of UNRWA and commit additional resources to all humanitarian groups providing aid to Palestinians not only because it is the right thing to do, but to end U.S. complicity in genocide

– Permanently end all monetary, diplomatic, and military aid given to Israel by correcting our budget and enforcing our own laws like Leahy Law

– Reallocate all funds given to Israel for ongoing humanitarian relief for Palestinians to help them rebuild, care for the sick & injured, bury the dead with dignity, and ensure all of their basic needs are taken care of

– 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 regional conflict

– Repeal all federal anti-BDS laws and pass legislation that voids all state-level anti-BDS laws

SOURCES

Amnesty International “Shocking spike in use of unlawful lethal force by Israeli forces against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank“

Amnesty International “Global: Zionism/Zionist hate speech policy review must not stifle legitimate criticism of Israel’s oppressive policies“

Oxford Reference “Definition of Terrorism“

Cambridge Dictionary “Definition of Violence”

Al Jazeera “Israel drops leaflets seeking intel on captives, as Gaza attacks continue“

Al-Haq “Israeli Military Drops Warning Leaflets on the Gaza Strip“

For more on prior leaflets Israel has dropped on Gaza since 10/7 (not an exhaustive list of every time), see prior petitions “CLEAN WATER IS A HUMAN RIGHT, STOP ISRAEL’S WAR CRIMES” and “ISRAELI EXTREMISM ON THE RISE- CALL FOR A CEASEFIRE NOW“

Estimated deaths as of 2/3/24 – 2/13/24 from multiple sources*

Al Jazeera quotes 28,473 dead as of 2/13/24. Al Jazeera always includes the most up-to-date official death tolls on their Breaking/live updates page. Because the daily live pages are refreshed so frequently for each new day, I can’t link you to a specific date. You can always check the Breaking/live section on their site for the most recent official numbers.

EuroMed Monitor quotes an estimated 35,096 dead shown on an infographic posted on their Instagram (link to post) as of 2/3/24. Their website has past infographics, but does not currently have this newest one included as of writing this blog post. This is not unusual- I believe they first post on social media and then add to the infographic section of their site later. Prior infographics posted on Instagram and then shown on their site have the exact same figures & data.

*Why are multiple sources used for the death count?

Associated Press “Gaza health officials say they lost the ability to count dead as Israeli offensive intensifies“

The situation in Gaza has only gotten worse since the AP published this article on 11/21. The official numbers we are seeing from Gaza’s Ministry of Health are undercounted, and have been since at least 11/21.

EuroMed Monitor is a NGO established in 2011 that advocates for the human rights of all persons across Europe and the MENA region. They have a regional office in the Palestinian Occupied Territories. I believe their estimates are credible which is why I quote them, and will continue to, when referring to the estimated death toll.

My personal opinion is that the true number is even higher than estimated- people are dying from starvation, thirst, infections, and illnesses. Even if the genocide ended this moment, these types of deaths will unfortunately continue for some time. I believe their deaths should be counted. They may not have been shot/bombed/etc. by the Israeli military, but their deaths are directly attributable to the total siege, occupation, and intentional** destruction of civilian, water, waste management, and medical infrastructure by Israel.

**Why are you accusing Israel of intentionally destroying important infrastructure and targeting civilians?

It’s not an accusation. They’ve admitted to it.

The Guardian “‘The Gospel’: how Israel uses AI to select bombing targets in Gaza“

972 Magazine “‘A mass assassination factory’: Inside Israel’s calculated bombing of Gaza“