Jayapal Statement Commending Biden for Statements in Support of Withholding Weapons from Israel
WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement in response to President Biden’s interview on the state of conflict in the Middle East:
“I commend President Biden for publicly stating that the U.S. will not supply Israel with weapons if they launch a full-scale invasion of Rafah that hits the population centers. This is a significant and unprecedented shift of policy that I, many Members of Congress and hundreds of thousands of people here in the U.S. and across the world have been calling for.
“Just last week, I and Rep. Madeleine Dean led a letter with 55 of our House colleagues calling on the President to make exactly this shift in policy to withhold certain offensive military aid to the Israeli government, including aid sourced from legislation already signed into law, in order to preempt a full-scale assault on Rafah.’ Our letter made clear, as did the President tonight, that the United States would continue to provide defensive military assistance that helps protect Israeli citizens from attacks by Hezbollah or Iran, such as the Iron Dome.
“I commend the President for heeding this call to ensure we protect innocent Palestinian lives and refuse to supply weapons to ensure no more civilians in Gaza are killed as a consequence of U.S. bombs. This is an important turning point in this war and, as the President himself said, he has heard the protestors across this country. Now we must achieve a ceasefire to protect innocent civilians, return all the hostages, and build a path towards security for both Israelis and Palestinians to live with peace and security.”