Stop Funding Genocide

For the past two years, Netanyahu and his government have waged a barbaric campaign of bombardment, starvation, and psychological terror against the Palestinian people - violating the well-established laws of war and basic human decency. The Israeli regime has blocked the UN and other aid groups from delivering lifesaving supplies to Palestinians, engineered a famine afflicting over two million people, killed more than 60,000 civilians and 250 journalists, and reduced over 80 percent of Gaza's buildings to rubble.

I have never minced words on this issue: Israel's actions in Gaza constitute genocide. The United Nations, the International Association of Genocide Scholars, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Israeli human rights groups have all reached the same conclusion.

I want to emphasize that, while I grieve deeply for the people of Palestine, I also mourn for the Israeli people who have suffered in the cycle of violence. Hamas committed war crimes by killing Israeli civilians on October 7. For the 250 Israelis who were kidnapped, I can only imagine the anguish that the families of hostages must have felt as they spent months in uncertainty, not knowing whether their loved ones were still alive. While Israel has the responsibility to ensure the safety of its civilians, it must adhere to international law. Both Israelis' and Palestinians' right to safety, sovereignty, and peace must be respected.

Sadly, the violence and genocide overseas has impacted our communities at home. Many San Franciscans have lost loved ones or have felt the sting of antisemitism, anti-Palestinian racism, and islamophobia. I firmly condemn such hate, and it should not be controversial to condemn genocide, demand accountability, and stand against hatred and censorship of our Jewish, Palestinian, and Muslim neighbors alike.

Today, while I am hopeful for a lasting ceasefire and an end to the genocide, we cannot be deceived by attempts from Trump and Netanyahu to distract us from reality. There is no ceasefire, and Israel's genocide against the Palestinian people continues. Israel is still bombing Gaza and restricting desperately needed aid, such as food and medical supplies — causing thousands of Palestinians in Gaza to go hungry and die from preventable diseases. Once in Congress, I will work to hold the Israeli government accountable for these crimes, and ensure that our tax dollars are not longer used to finance genocide by supporting an arms embargo. I support the Block the Bombs Act and House Resolution 876 recognizing the genocide against the Palestinian people.

Lasting peace will require much more than empty promises. The first step is to end Israel's genocide in Gaza, and stop the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. After that, we must engage in a process that includes not only Israelis but also Palestinians, who have historically been left out of any peace process in the region and denied agency and actual sovereignty. Any peace agreement in the region must have the full, democratic backing of all those affected. And finally, there must be justice and accountability for those guilty of war crimes.

I want to be clear - this is not just about Israel and Palestine. The United States must always call out genocide and other atrocities wherever they occur and never fund it; failing to do so erodes our credibility and signals tolerance for such crimes, further undermining international laws and norms. While Israel's genocide in Gaza has, rightfully, received a lot of attention, many don't know that the United States is indirectly funding a genocide in Sudan. Since 2023, Sudan has been immersed in conflict which has turned into one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with over 12 million people displaced and upwards of 400,000 killed. The United States determined earlier this year that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its allied militias are committing genocide against non-Arab ethnic groups in Sudan. The RSF's campaign has been sustained in large part by weapons and funding from the United Arab Emirates, a key U.S. ally in the region to whom we provide military funding. We must stop funding and selling arms to the UAE's military as long as they are using those funds and arms to enable a genocide in Sudan, and we must apply meaningful pressure on the UAE to end the violence in Sudan.