Senator Wiener’s Statement on Escalating Violence in Israel and Palestine

SAN FRANCISCO - Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) released the following statement regarding the escalation of violence in Israel and Palestine:

 “As a Jew whose family fled the pogroms in Eastern Europe, and thus avoided death in the Holocaust, I deeply understand the importance of Israel existing as a safe haven for the Jewish people. Anti-Semitism, sadly, was a big part of my childhood in suburban New Jersey. I was also born just three years before the Yom Kippur War, a military attack on Israel that occurred on the holiest day of the year in Judaism. The Israel of my childhood was the David to the Goliath that was the conglomeration of its neighbors, and Israel’s continued existence did not always feel inevitable.  

“I unequivocally believe in the importance of a Jewish state. This summer, I received thousands of death threats from QAnon supporters, many of which were violently anti-Semitic. It was terrifying and once again reminded me of the precarious nature of being a Jew in a country and in a world where we are an ethnic and religious minority. Jews need a safe haven. We need a Jewish and democratic Israel living side-by-side, in peace, with a Palestinian state.

“In that vein, I unequivocally condemn Hamas, which is firing thousands of missiles indiscriminately into Israel with the purpose of killing civilians and instilling terror. Hamas’s attacks are an opportunistic response to escalating tensions in Jerusalem. As a result, Israelis are sleeping in bomb shelters and relying on Israel’s sophisticated missile defense system to avoid Hamas’s rocket attacks. Yet, despite those precautions, twelve civilians in Israel have died from rocket fire, including children. 

“Just as Jews deserve a safe place to live peacefully without fear of violence, so do Palestinians. Palestinians in Gaza are dying, are losing their children and homes, and have nowhere to shelter from the aggressive, escalating airstrikes from Israel. More than 170 Gazans, the vast majority of whom are civilians and 40 of whom are children, have died. These attacks on Gaza have largely taken place during Ramadan, the holiest month of the year for many Palestinians. This cycle of violence and trauma is trapping the next generation of Gazans in an unlivable situation.

“Through its settlement and land expropriation policies, the Netanyahu Administration is escalating the conflict, making both Palestinians and Israelis less safe, and jeopardizing world support for a nation that absolutely must continue to exist as a democratic haven for Jews around the world. As someone who loves Israel and wants to see it thrive in peace and security, I am furious that Prime Minister Netanyahu — desperate to cling to power, facing a corruption trial, and unable to win an election — continues with these escalations. Prime Minister Netanyahu is harming both Israel and Palestine by undermining the possibility of achieving peace through a two-state solution. His policies lead to a never-ending cycle of escalation, death, and hatred, with no one winning and everyone suffering.

“And, for the first time in decades, violence isn’t limited to attacks back and forth between Israel and Palestine. The violence is now internal within Israel, with disturbing sectarian mobs roaming the streets of Israeli cities. Israeli Jews and Palestinian citizens of Israel must be able to live together without fear of being attacked by extremist mobs. Yet, this internal violence is the inevitable result of the continued escalation between Israel and Palestine, in addition to the right-wing extremists fueled by anti-Arab rhetoric by Prime Minister Netanyahu and his Administration.

“Israel must agree to a ceasefire with Hamas and de-escalate. The current escalation — which has begun to look like a full-blown war — serves absolutely no one and will result in more and more Israelis and Palestinians dying or having their lives upended. All loss of civilian life — Israeli, Palestinian, or otherwise — is unacceptable, and we must never view it as normal or necessary. 

“My heart is breaking for the Israelis and Palestinians living in constant fear, and I call upon leaders — including U.S. leaders — to push for an immediate ceasefire, and then step up and work for a two-state solution with a geographically and economically viable Palestine. I am heartened by demonstrations of Israeli Jews and Palestinian citizens of Israel who are calling for their shared communities to ‘stand together against violence and racism, and for a common and equal future for all.’ As these demonstrators understand, peace is achieved through diplomacy, not violence.”