Mr President, put an end to this: Palestinian Americans to Joe Biden

Washington: Arab, Muslim and Palestinian rights advocates in the United States have strongly condemned Washington’s unwavering support for Israel’s military operations in Gaza, and expressed concern about the “dehumanisation” of Palestinians by both media outlets and politicians.

At a press conference held on Friday, spokespersons from various advocacy groups in the country also raised concerns about the potential rise in hate incidents targeting Arab and Muslim Americans.

Nihad Awad, the executive director of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), slammed President Joe Biden, accusing him of failing to recognise the humanity of Palestinians.

“You are not helping,” Awad said, speaking as if he were addressing Biden himself. “You are, in fact, giving the green light for Israel to commit genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. You failed us as American citizens. You failed us as Palestinians. And you failed the world community,” he said, as quoted by Al Jazeera.

Also Read:UK to deploy Royal Navy ships to support Israel

Biden, a self-described Zionist, has consistently expressed support for Israel. In a speech this week, he pledged to provide Israel with the military needs to “defend itself” necessary to safeguard its defense, while barely mentioning the Palestinian civilians and their plight enduring bombardments in Gaza.

“We call on you, Mr President, to put an end to this violence. You have the ability and power to prevent a mass crime and genocide from happening,” Awad said.

Palestinian group Hamas launched an unprecedented and highly coordinated attack on Israel on October 7 from the besieged Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of people and taking dozens captive.

Israel retaliated with a bombing campaign that has killed nearly 1,900 Palestinians, including more than 500 children in Gaza. Israeli authorities have also announced a total blockade on Gaza, preventing fuel and other basic supplies from entering the territory.

The Human Rights Watch (HRW) have also accused Israel of using white phosphorous in violation of international law, which prohibits the use of the highly incendiary munition in populated areas like Gaza, a narrow strip of land home to 2.3 million people.

Early on Friday, Israel ordered more than 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza, nearly half of the territory’s population, to flee south within 24 hours, sparking further outrage from rights groups.

Also Read:A ‘new front’ depends on the 'Zionist regime’s actions' in Gaza: Iran

At the news conference in Washington, DC, Awad, who is Palestinian American, stressed the need to address the historical context of the conflict.

Leading rights groups, like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have also criticised Israel of imposing a system of apartheid on Palestinians.

“History did not start on October 7,” Awad said, referring to the Hamas attack. Calling Gaza the world’s largest open-air prison, he said that a frequent criticism among rights advocates is Israel’s efforts to restrict movement to and from the territory and detain its residents.

Awad added that Palestinians have been “subjugated to all kinds of violence, discrimination, ethnic cleansing” for decades.

He said that the killing of two US citizens by Israel last year, Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and elderly Palestinian American man Omar Assad, proved that their lives did not matter to the US government.

“We, as Muslims and Palestinians and Americans, we believe that every human life is valuable and sacred and has to be protected,” Awad said.

Chris Habiby, director of national government affairs and advocacy at the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), said the US should be calling for immediate de-escalation to stop the violence.

Instead, he said, “our elected leaders are perpetuating Israeli lies, calling for a religious war and openly advocating for the destruction of the second most densely populated place on planet Earth”.

Several US politicians have called for unchecked violence against Gaza. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told Fox News earlier this week, “We’re in a religious war here. I am with Israel. Do whatever the hell you have to do to defend yourself. Level the place.”

Habiby said that such rhetoric has led to a “culture of fear” in Arab-American communities, also citing incidents of assault against Palestine solidarity demonstrators across the country.

Based on a report by Al Jazeera

Also Read:We are fighting Nazis: Former Israel PM Bennett tells TV presenter