Several elected officials in southern Alameda County are calling on Congress and the Biden administration to facilitate a long-term ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and to condition future U.S. funding to Israel “on a genuine path to peace.”
The Nov. 26 letter denounces both the violence of Oct. 7 and Israel’s retaliatory actions since, stating that the temporary ceasefire, which went into effect Friday, Nov. 24, was a positive step. However, it emphasizes more needs to be done to ensure a sustained peace, including “a long-term ceasefire, a return of all hostages, massive immediate humanitarian assistance for Palestinian people in Gaza,” and reconsidering the U.S.’s support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“For decades, Netanyahu has shown the world that he has no interest in a peace where both Palestinians and Israelis have equality and self-determination,” the letter states. “Why then, should the United States continue to support his military and political strategy in responding to the attacks of October 7? Why then, should we push through billions of additional military funding without restrictions, to continue bombings in Gaza and as settler violence in the West Bank continues to escalate?”
The letter was signed by the following elected officials from southern Alameda County:
- Angela Andrews and Daniel Goldstein, members of the Hayward City Council;
- April Oquenda and Ken Rawdon, members of the Hayward Unified School District Board of Education;
- Sara Lamnin, a member of the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District Board of Directors;
- Dolly Adams and Sara Raymond, members of the Castro Valley Unified School District Board of Education;
- Aziz Akbari, a member of the Alameda County Water District Board of Directors;
- Liz Ames, a member of the Bay Area Rapid Transit District Board of Directors;
- Lance Kwan, a member of the Ohlone Community College District Board of Trustees;
- 2nd District Alameda County Supervisor Elisa Márquez;
- Assemblymembers Alex Lee and Liz Ortega; and
- Shamsa Rafay, a member of the New Haven Unified School District Board of Education.
