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SvennoJ on 24 July 2024
Representative Tlaib says she will ‘never back down’ from dissent
Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian American member of Congress, said in a social media post following Netanyahu’s speech that Palestinians will never be erased.
“I will never back down in speaking truth to power,” she said.
“The apartheid government of Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians. Palestinians will not be erased. Solidarity with all those outside of these walls in the streets protesting and exercising their right to dissent."
By my count, roughly 100 of the 212 House Democrats and 27 of 51 Senate Democrats (and Dem-caucusing independents) are in the chamber for Netanyahu's speech.
That's around half of each caucus absent. https://t.co/1wF75qw3Bi
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) July 24, 2024
I keep hearing the Republican party is divided, yet the Democrats are split as well when it comes to Israel.
Recap
- Tense scene unfolded outside the Capitol as thousands of protesters came out to denounce Israel’s continuing war in Gaza.
- Police fired tear gas at protesters deemed “violent”. Inside the Capitol, Netanyahu blasted the protesters as “useful idiots” for Israel’s adversary, Iran.
- Netanyahu also used the podium as a bully pulpit to blast efforts at the International Criminal Court to seek an arrest warrant against him for war crimes.
- Faced with calls to end the conflict, Netanyahu stopped short of announcing a deal to free Israeli captives, generating outrage among their relatives.
- Instead, he once again called for “total victory” against the Palestinian group Hamas and mapped a future for Gaza where Israel maintains “overriding security control” to prevent further conflict.
- He also called for an extension of the Abraham Accords, an effort in 2020 and 2021 to normalise relations between Israel and nearby Arab states.
