The worst conflict in recent years in the Gaza Strip follows days of clashes in East Jerusalem and an Israeli court’s decision to side with Jewish settlers demanding several Palestinian families be evicted from their homes in the disputed city.
Israel’s allies in the Senate Democratic Caucus have been fending off increasing criticism of Tel Aviv’s aggression towards Palestinians.
Fighting between Israel and Gaza has descended into the worst violence in years, triggered by court rulings to evict Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem and banning Palestinians from visiting holy sites in the city during Ramadan.
Palestinians gather around the ruins of buildings which were destroyed in Israeli air strikes amid a flare-up of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in the northern Gaza Strip May 13, 2021.
Key Democratic figures, however, are acknowledging Israel’s right to evict Palestinians and to respond to rocket attacks from Hamas.
“Israel is a country of law. I have confidence in their judicial system so let’s let their judicial system play this out,” said Sen. Ben Cardin (Md.), who applauded the handling of the current situation by the administration of President Joe Biden.
The Democrat, who is on the Foreign Relations Committee, also urged Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and Hamas to refrain from “unilateral action.” However, Cardin argued Israel’s right “to defend itself.”
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) has also weighed in on the issue, questioning the ability of US senators to make judgments on the legality of the evictions.
“I don’t know. I’m not an expert in international law to come to that conclusion… I’m not about to preempt whatever they decide under Israeli laws,” he said.
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) denounced Hamas’ rocket attacks as “unacceptable,” saying:
Progressives Slam Israel’s ‘Abhorrent’ Plans
The simmering tensions within the ranks of the Democrats come as progressives like Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) have slammed Israel’s “abhorrent” plans to evict Palestinian families from Jerusalem’s east, which are currently under review by Israel’s Supreme Court.
Senator Warren urged the Biden administration to “make clear to the Israeli government that these evictions are illegal and must stop immediately.”
Bernie Sanders (I-VT) tweeted that the US should “speak out strongly against the violence by government-allied Israeli extremists in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) on Monday denounced Israeli air strikes that killed civilians in Gaza as “an act of terrorism.”
Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) went on Twitter to underscore that “evictions of families in East Jerusalem would violate international law.”
He did clarify in an interview that he fully supported Israel’s right to defend itself from rocket attacks.
A senior Democratic aide was cited by The Hill as saying the current situation revealed a “difficult dynamic.”
Jewish-Arab Violence
The explosive situation on the Gaza Strip border began on Monday evening following days of clashes in East Jerusalem after Israeli authorities erected barriers around the Al-Aqsa Mosque – one of the holiest sites of Islam, ahead of Ramadan on 12 April, while leaving access to Jewish holy sites unobstructed.
Smoke rises following Israeli airstrikes on a building in Gaza City, Thursday, May 13, 2021
Tensions ratcheted further after Israel’s Supreme Court ruled to evict a number of Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem.
Since the start of the week, Palestinian militants have launched about 2,000 rockets toward Israel, while Tel Aviv has retaliated against the Hamas Islamist movement.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
0.00 (0%) 0 votes
