(New York, May 17, 2021) — The American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee expresses its anguish on the worsening humanitarian crisis and loss of innocent civilian lives due to Israeli aggression on occupied Palestinian land. We fully support Senator Bob Menendez calling for a “full accounting of actions that have led to civilian deaths and destruction of media outlets.”

What has been happening in Palestine is a history of settler colonialism and continued ethnic cleansing. Israeli military occupation has been unconditionally supported, and funded, by the U.S. The ongoing violence continues to have implications on the U.S. security and foreign interests in the Middle East and its effectiveness as a global leader that can broker peace equitably.
We appreciate increasingly bold voices of consciousness rising from Capitol Hill and the Senate holding the Israeli regime accountable for its barbaric strikes against children, women and the indiscriminate destruction of homes and neighborhoods, where families have lived for decades.

The Biden administration, however, has only taken small steps to acknowledge the current ongoing conflict and has not engaged regional stakeholders sufficiently to end the misery of war. The U.S. must maintain its position as an international beacon of freedom, democracy, and equality and swiftly demand accountability for the innocent lives lost.

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