Boston Mayor Michelle Wu mentioned she helps the “positions and actions” of town’s federal delegation in response to the Israel-Hamas War, a few of whom have known as for a cease-fire and U.S.-imposed situations on Israeli army funding.
U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley has repeatedly known as for a cease-fire in Gaza, and U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren are among the many 12 Democratic senators pushing for an modification to President Biden’s roughly $111 billion nationwide safety supplemental request that might place situations on Israeli army assist.
Wu weighed in on the Israel-Hamas War Tuesday in response to a name from a pro-Palestinian activist on GBH’s Boston Public Radio. The caller accused the United States and Boston of financially supporting a “genocide of the Palestinian people” and requested why the mayor, Markey and Warren have been silent on requires a cease-fire.
“We feel the hurt so deeply in our local community as well,” Wu mentioned. “It is just unfathomable to imagine, even at a very high level so far away from the conflict, what it means to lose so many tens of thousands of lives. Two-thirds women and children — people who are just trying to survive and take care of their families.”
The mayor went on to say that her “primary focus” is guaranteeing the protection of everybody who lives in and visits Boston, which includes supporting “our federal delegation as they take the positions and actions they were elected to do.”
Wu, Markey, Warren and Pressley are progressive Democrats.
The ongoing Middle East battle, Wu mentioned, has coincided with an increase in Islamophobia, antisemitism, and a “much more visible presence of hate and violence” all through the nation. Her intention is that “all voices are heard” and “everyone can be in community with each other” in Boston, she mentioned.
When pressed about whether or not she agreed with Warren about whether or not the U.S. ought to impose situations on funding despatched to the Israeli army, Wu considerably dodged the query, citing a lack of awareness and experience, however once more reiterated her help for the federal delegation’s actions.
“I like to weigh in on things where I feel competent in my knowledge and expertise,” Wu mentioned. “My knowledge and expertise is in the city of Boston. I support our federal delegation in the work they’re doing to try to make sure they’re advocating for what’s best.”
Wu’s remarks observe her extra abbreviated response finally Tuesday’s State of the City tackle, which was to briefly pause when her speech was interrupted by pro-Palestinian activists calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Twenty folks had been arrested, police mentioned.
The president’s supplemental request contains greater than $10 billion in protection funding for Israel, The Hill reported final month, noting that Biden has usually rejected conditioning assist to Israel, albeit with combined messaging.
Warren and Markey are pushing for an modification that might require the U.S. to put situations on that funding, in line with a Dec. 7 press launch from Markey’s workplace.
“When it comes to U.S. military aid to Israel, American support cannot be a blank check to a right-wing Netanyahu government that has demonstrated a gross disregard for the lives of Palestinian citizens,” Warren mentioned on the time. “U.S. military aid always includes conditions, and there is no exception, even for our allies.”
Warren posted an identical assertion on X, previously often known as Twitter, on Jan. 4.
On Monday, Pressley renewed her name for a ceasefire in Gaza, as a part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The vacation marked precisely 100 days because the Oct. 7 terrorist assault on Israel that sparked battle within the area.
“This conflict is not new,” Pressley mentioned in a press release. “It is a chain reaction of violence and trauma that leaves a trail of sorrow and hardship for families in both Palestine and Israel.”
The mayor was not requested about hostages held by Hamas terrorists.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”