Sen. Ossoff condemns attempts to minimize Hamas atrocities, affirms Israel’s obligation and right to self-defense, warns “unfolding humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza is “both an immense tragedy and a threat to our national security”
More than 1.5 million Gazan civilians are displaced, with severe shortages of clean water, food, and medicine
Ossoff: “I fervently want Israel to succeed, both in defeating the threat posed by Hamas, and as a historic effort to secure a safe homeland for Jews. But I do not accept that the total deprivation of millions of innocent civilians is necessary for Israel to secure its objectives, or in the national interest of the United States.”
Ossoff: “Just as I pray for the freedom of hostages taken so cruelly from their families, as a pro-Israel Jewish American I urge mercy for the innocent civilians in Gaza.”
VIDEO: Sen. Ossoff Addresses U.S. Senate on Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, spoke on the U.S. Senate floor this week urging “moral clarity” on the Israel-Hamas war. Sen. Ossoff condemned attempts to minimize Hamas’ atrocities, affirmed Israel’s obligation and right to self-defense, and warned that the scale of the “unfolding humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza — with more than 1.5 million displaced and severe shortages of clean water, food, and medicine — was “both an immense tragedy and a threat to our national security.”
“The overwhelming majority of Americans were and still are united in our grief, outrage, and solidarity with the Israeli people,”Sen. Ossoff said in his speech. “For Jews, these events call to mind the Einsatzgruppen-SS, the Nazi death squads who hunted and massacred our relatives across Eastern Europe 80 years ago. The slaughter of Jews at such scale and with such cruelty reopened deep Jewish wounds suffered throughout our history.”
“It is clear that under such circumstances, Israel has an obligation to protect its citizens and a right to do so with force,” Sen. Ossoff said. “This, too, requires moral clarity.”
“The Senate must acknowledge that conditions for civilians in Gaza are catastrophic. And that this unfolding humanitarian catastrophe is both an immense tragedy and a threat to our national security,” said Sen. Ossoff. “Clean water, food, and medicine are scarce, and the continued obstruction of aid necessary for sanitation and health care will worsen suffering, disease, and death. Small children are wasting from malnutrition and falling ill in overcrowded shelters and makeshift camps.”
“An unmitigated humanitarian disaster in Gaza is not just a moral failure. It undermines American national security. It heightens the risk that the war might spread and draw American forces further into combat,” Sen. Ossoff said.
Sen. Ossoff continued, “I fervently want Israel to succeed, both in defeating the threat posed by Hamas, and as a historic effort to secure a safe homeland for Jews. But I do not accept that the total deprivation of millions of innocent civilians is necessary for Israel to secure its objectives, or in the national interest of the United States.”
Sen. Ossoff concluded, “So, Mr. President, I urge Israel’s political leaders to act with wisdom to listen to Israel’s greatest friend and ally, the United States. And, Mr. President, just as I pray for the freedom of hostages, taken so cruelly from their families, as a pro-Israel Jewish American, I urge mercy for the innocent civilians in Gaza.”
Click here to watch Sen. Ossoff’s floor speech.
Please find a transcript of Sen. Ossoff’s floor speech below:
SEN. OSSOFF: “Mr. President, when Hamas gunmen stormed into towns and kibbutzim in Southern Israel, and massacred over 1,000 Israeli civilians, killing families, raping women, abducting babies torturing and beheading Jews, in the very state that was established after the Holocaust to be their sanctuary, the overwhelming majority of Americans were and still are united in our grief, outrage, and solidarity with the Israeli people. For Jews, these events call to mind the Einsatzgruppen SS, the Nazi death squads, who hunted and massacred our relatives across Eastern Europe 80 years ago.
“The slaughter of Jews at such scale and with such cruelty reopened deep Jewish wounds suffered throughout our history. Salt in those wounds was the minimization and even celebration of this massacre by a few, including a few in the United States who attempted to excuse such atrocities as a righteous comeuppance for Israeli policies or the inevitable consequence of Israel’s very existence.
“That moment required moral clarity.
“No matter one’s objections to Israeli policy, or one’s perspective on history, there is no justification and can be no apology for the deliberate massacre and torture and abduction of civilians. There is no excuse. There is no context, historical or political that mitigates the crime.
“It is clear that under such circumstances, Israel has an obligation to protect its citizens and a right to do so with force.
“And this too requires moral clarity.
“No government could be expected to tolerate such an attack and such a threat without taking decisive action to defend itself and to bring the perpetrators to justice.
“Mr. President, now 5 weeks since the October 7 massacre, Israel’s military response, which is substantially armed by the United States, directly impacts the lives of millions of people, the future of the Middle East, and America’s national security, and it is therefore a necessary subject of scrutiny by the U.S. Senate.
“And so, Mr. President, the Senate must acknowledge that conditions for civilians in Gaza are catastrophic.
“And that this unfolding humanitarian catastrophe is both an immense tragedy and a threat to our national security.
“Hamas embeds its military capabilities within Gaza’s civilian infrastructure, it hides behind and beneath Gaza’s civilian population.
“But the depraved tactics of Hamas do not relieve Israeli leaders of their obligations to protect innocent life, nor should they harden our hearts against the innocent people who live under their rule.
“In five weeks, relentless airstrikes and the continuous use of massive munitions in dense urban areas, have killed thousands of civilians and seriously wounded many thousands more, including many children.
“In a territory half the size of DeKalb County, Georgia, tens of thousands of homes have been destroyed or damaged beyond use, and more than 1.5 million people have been displaced.
“Clean water, food, and medicine are scarce, and the continued obstruction of aid necessary for sanitation and health care will worsen suffering, disease, and death.
“Small children are wasting from malnutrition and falling ill in overcrowded shelters and makeshift camps.
“Imagine the desperation of families with young children, just trying to survive.
“And this too, Mr. President, requires moral clarity.
“The extent of civilian death and suffering in Gaza is unnecessary.
“It is a moral failure, and it should be unacceptable to the United States.
“There is no doubt that to defeat the threat posed by Hamas, force is required, and with the use of force, no matter how judicious, facing an enemy hiding behind civilians, there will be civilian casualties.
“But restraint and the acceptance of some military risk, out of concern for innocent life, are demonstrations of strength, even and especially when confronting a brutal enemy like Hamas.
“Concern for the innocent, especially when fighting an enemy unbound by any morality, demonstrates the values for which the U.S. should stand, and which Israel proclaims — the same values meant to be the bedrock of our alliance.
“Mr. President, an unmitigated humanitarian disaster in Gaza is not just a moral failure.
“It undermines American national security.
“It heightens the risk that the war might spread and draw American forces further into combat.
“It sews the seeds of hate and dims the prospects for a long-term, sustainable peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
“It gives fodder to terrorists who would strike Americans and our allies abroad and at home.
“It damages the credibility of the United States and our allies as champions of a future defined by humanitarian values — the same values at stake in Ukraine, where Russia would push dictatorship into Europe, and in Asia, where China threatens the future of human freedom.
“If in 6 months, Gaza is rubble, with tens of thousands of civilians dead and millions of desperate refugees with no viable plan to govern its ruins, that would be a disaster, not just for all those killed and wounded and immiserated, but also for Israel, for the region, and for the United States.
“Mr. President, the United States has stood with Israel since October 7, and still does.
“The President powerfully condemned Hamas atrocities. He flew to Israel, while Israel was under fire. He rushed supplies to the IDF and sent powerful military assets to deter Iran and its proxies.
“Americans are working around the clock to secure the release of hundreds of hostages.
“Nevertheless, requests by the United States that the Israeli leadership conduct a more targeted campaign, that they permit and provide safe passage for aid essential to the sustenance of innocent life, that they clearly define objectives, that they prevent extra judicial killings by extremists in the West Bank, that they present a credible plan for Gaza’s future governance, have mostly been ignored.
“Mr. President, I fervently want Israel to succeed, both in defeating the threat posed by Hamas, and as a historic effort to secure a safe homeland for Jews.
“But I do not accept that the total deprivation of millions of innocent civilians is necessary for Israel to secure its objectives, or in the national interest of the United States, and where the United States is committing arms, funds, and support to those efforts, we must guard our principles and our interests.
“So, Mr. President, I urge Israel’s political leaders to act with wisdom to listen to Israel’s greatest friend and ally — the United States.
“And, Mr. President, just as I pray for the freedom of hostages taken so cruelly from their families, as a pro-Israel Jewish American, I urge mercy for the innocent civilians in Gaza.
“And I yield the floor.”
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