Press Releases

Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA), a senior member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the President Emeritus of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, joined Congresswoman Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Congressman William Keating (D-MA), and 59 of their colleagues in sending a letter to President Biden, urging him to use diplomatic leverage to pursue a stop to the violence in Gaza, outline a clear and fair plan for a Palestinian state, and exercise oversight over arms and materials purchased by Israel with U.S. assistance.

The lawmakers express concern with the Netanyahu government’s handling of the war in Gaza – including a disregard for the well-being of civilians and a refusal to outline a legitimate exit strategy or a path forward for stability and security.

“We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Israeli people; and we also unequivocally support the Palestinian people’s dignity, right to life, and right to self-determination,” the lawmakers wrote. “Israel’s long-term security and peace will only come with the prioritization of reconciliation and the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution.”

The letter asks the President to continue to advocate for long-term security by:

Urging the Israeli government to pursue a negotiated stop to the fighting to achieve the immediate release of the hostages and secure desperately needed humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza Advocating for a full assessment of the prosecution of this war Publicly outlining a clear plan and pathway to a Palestinian state that emphasizes the critical role that a significantly reformed Palestinian Authority must play in post-war Gaza; and further make clear that the US will not accept Hamas’s occupation or operational control of Gaza, nor Israel’s reoccupation of Gaza or any attempt to establish Israeli illegal outposts or settlements in the Gaza Strip Instituting greater oversight over arms and material purchased with US assistance to verify compliance with domestic and international law Reinforcing US positioning that the West Bank and Gaza are “occupied territory” under international law, and continuing to condemn and further hold accountable settler violence in the West Bank

Read the full letter here.