Democratic senators urge Blinken to press ‘Israel’ on Gaza reconstruction

Seventeen Democratic senators have written to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging him to press the occupation state of ‘Israel’ to allow materials needed for reconstruction and humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

In a letter shared with Axios, the senators wrote that the Biden administration should insist on the reopening of two border crossings “so that critical humanitarian personnel can enter and that fuel and building materials can be brought in to address the growing needs of the civilian population.”

The effort is led by Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).

Among the signatories are Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Murphy and Tim Kaine.

The senators called on Blinken to ask ‘Israel’ to lift restrictions on the movement of Palestinians for medical treatment or to visit relatives, as very few Palestinians have received such permits in recent years.

They also called for U.S. funding to humanitarian efforts in Gaza to be restored to pre-Trump levels and urged the administration to appoint an ambassador to ‘Israel’, consul general in Jerusalem to coordinate with the Palestinians, and USAID chief of mission.

“In order for this ceasefire to be durable and avoid a renewal of the cycle of violence, it is critical that we improve the dire conditions in Gaza that only contribute to despair and further fuel extremism,” the senators stressed.

Van Hollen and his fellow signatories didn’t try to get any Republicans to sign onto the letter in light of the negative statements several Senate Republicans had made on U.S. aid to the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, a Senate staffer familiar with the process told Axios.

The U.S., Egypt, Qatar and others have committed to rebuilding Gaza — where many homes, health care facilities and schools were destroyed and crucial water infrastructure was damaged during Israel’s 11-day aggression on Gaza — as well as providing humanitarian aid.

But Israel is threatening to hold up that process, as it has told the U.S. and Egypt that it won’t allow the reconstruction to begin unless progress is made on securing the release of Israeli soldiers held by Hamas.

Blinken, however, told Barak Ravid, writer at Axios, in an interview last week that the reconstruction process must move forward and not be conditioned on the return of the Israeli soldiers and citizens held by Hamas.