What We Can Do to End the War in Gaza

Leading Members of Congress and national organizations are working to end the slaughter. They deserve our support.

Fear and hate can make people do horrible things. None of us would ever kill a baby. But that is what Hamas terrorists did October 7. Repeatedly. It is what the Israeli Defense Forces are doing in Gaza. Repeatedly. Both rationalize these horrible acts as justified and necessary for their own survival. Both are wrong. It has to stop.

Hamas killed an estimated 1200 people on October 7. Israeli artillery, bombs and infantry attacks have killed 12,000 people in Gaza, as of estimates released last Friday. We no longer have reliable figures for the dead as the IDF has destroyed most of Gaza’s medical infrastructure, including the ability of the Gaza Health Ministry to report accurately the death toll. “The corpses are in the street, so we can’t say any number right now,” a health official told The Washington Post. US officials say the death toll is likely much higher than the ministry estimates, with many bodies still under the rubble.

We do not, however, need to just watch this war. We can do something to end it.

The easiest way is to support groups working to stop the war. My wife and I are long-time members of J Street, a pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-diplomacy organization. They have advanced a comprehensive approach that balances Israel’s security needs with practical steps to end the war. Their very competent staff lobbies Congress and the Administration, and they fielded a peace contingent at the pro-Israel rally on the Washington Mall yesterday.

With apologies for the lengthy quote, here is a key excerpt from the J Street plan, after statements condemning Hamas and urging diplomacy:

We support a massive commitment to humanitarian relief by the United States that matches its commitment to security assistance for Israel. Congress should approve a supplemental assistance package that includes significant, designated assistance for Gaza civilian relief. The US commitment to humanitarian relief should at least approach its commitment to security assistance for Israel. US funding of weapons and equipment for Israel brings with it responsibility for the well-being of the civilians in harm’s way.

We support consideration of alternative strategies and tactics for removing Hamas from operational control of Gaza that minimize harm to Palestinian civilians. The relentless air campaign and the invasion underway on the ground have killed and will kill thousands – even tens of thousands – of noncombatants. By taking a pause in its actions, Israel can consider alternative strategies and hear more from military veterans of recent urban combat in Iraq among others offering alternatives.

We support the Biden Administration’s efforts to prevent regional escalation. Regional actors from Hezbollah to Iran and other loosely affiliated groups may try to expand the field of fighting. The Biden administration must continue as well to press Israel to end settler violence and provocations on the West Bank, aimed at driving Palestinians from their land and villages in particular in Area C while attention is focused on Gaza.

We urge the White House and Congress to impose clear guardrails on Israeli policy as it works to secure further security assistance from Congress in a supplemental aid package. These include ensuring that Israel: take all possible measures to minimize civilian casualties and harm; facilitate robust humanitarian aid; enact zero tolerance for settler violence and bring a halt to all provocative policies and actions on the West Bank and East Jerusalem; and acknowledge that post-conflict arrangements will ultimately result in the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

We call on the President to outline a clear vision to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This conflict did not start on October 7th. It has no military resolution. Only courageous diplomacy to achieve a political resolution leading to a Palestinian state can end this conflict and provide the meaningful security both people crave and the freedom Palestinians must have from occupation, settlements and blockade. J Street has outlined thoughts about how to do this, and we believe the President should commit to recognition of a Palestinian state and lay out a clear vision now of the path to statehood that establishes the rationale for removal of Hamas from operational control of Gaza and clarifies the future the United States envisions.

You can read the full statement here.

Other groups, such as Jewish Voice for Peace and Americans for Peace Now have taken direct actions, including this JVP sit-in at the Capitol in October, where 300 protesters were arrested, including some of the 30 rabbis who demonstrated.

We can call or write our Members of Congress to encourage them to support the actions of their colleagues working to end the violence and prevent a widening war. Just yesterday, I contacted one of our local Congressmen to urge him to support to an important letter advanced by Rep. Jamie Raskin and others to curtail the rising settler violence in the West Bank. He responded immediately and signed on.

The letter urges Secretary of State Blinken to “immediately and strongly convey to the Israeli government its responsibility to uphold the rule of law in the West Bank and protect all civilians under its jurisdiction, while holding perpetrators of vigilante attacks and intimidation to account.” You can get more information here. The letter closes for signatures very soon, so act now, if you can.

You can also call your Member directly and urge them to support a ceasefire. Telos, a wonderful group that has been promoting peace between Israelis and Palestinians for decades (and whose trip to the occupied West Bank transformed my understanding of the conflict) has a great script to use for your call.

Is it finally time to condition our generous aid to Israel? Many think so. In a few weeks, the Congress will finalize the Administration $14 Billion aid request. This would be in addition to the $3.8 billion America provides Israel annually. There are growing calls to restrict the aid.

The Washington Post reported this week: “In a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, more than 30 U.S.-based aid, advocacy and religious organizations including Oxfam America, Amnesty International and the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) expressed alarm about the Pentagon’s plan to provide the Israel Defense Forces 155mm artillery munitions from a special American weapons stockpile in that country.”

“Under the current circumstances, granting the government of Israel access to these munitions would undermine the protection of civilians, respect for international humanitarian law [IHL], and the credibility of the Biden administration,” the groups wrote in their letter, “Simply put, it is difficult to imagine a scenario in which high explosive 155mm artillery shells could be used in Gaza in compliance with IHL.”

I would also cut out funds for the 2000-lb. bombs that Israel has dropped on refugee camps, killing hundreds in an attempt to destroy Hamas tunnels. And the JDAM kits that turn “dumb'‘ bombs into “smart” bombs, perpetuating the myth of precision targeting. We should fund Israel’s defense, not its offense.

I do not know how to support those inside the Biden Administration who are bravely protesting the President’s policy and urging him to do more. But I am going to a policy dinner tonight with current officials where I can at least raise these concerns. Perhaps you may have opportunities like this as well.

For example, recently 100 State Department and AID officials sent a letter criticizing U.S policy. “We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the letter states. I am going to urge my colleagues to support and amplify these demands.

More basically, you can also donate to aid for the victims of Hamas and the IDF. J Street provides a useful list of major organizations here, from the International Committee of the Red Cross to the New Israel Fund’s Emergency Response Plan.

Finally, you may know that I was honored to serve as the president of Ploughshares Fund for 12 years. The foundation put out a helpful list of the groups it supports, including those working on the nuclear implications of the expanding war. All of them do outstanding work:

• Win Without War – Provides policy resources on the issue, including tracking and key updates on the crisis.

• International Crisis Group – Maintains the Iran-US/Israel Trigger List, an interactive tool to identify risks of direct or indirect confrontation between the Iran and the United States/Israel, including daily updates on several regional flashpoints.

• Friends Committee on National Legislation – Published an advocacy toolkit for contacting lawmakers in support of a ceasefire, de-escalation and restraint.

• J Street – Released an issue brief with recommendations for US policy following the October attacks.

• Secure Families Initiative – A nonpartisan group of military spouses and family members, released a statement on US involvement in the Israel-Gaza war, advocating for restraint and de-escalation.

• Middle East Voices – Led by Barbara Slavin at the Stimson Center, this online magazine provides analysis from a variety of perspectives, including regional security dimensions with Iran.

• International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons – Published a collection of essays explaining the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons, including on health, the environment and agriculture, and the economy.

I hope these suggestions help you direct your anger, grief and deep concern for this conflict in some constructive directions. I know that simply assembling this list has helped me.