The Oakland city council came under fire after it unanimously passed a resolution this week calling for a permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war – while rejecting language that would have condemned the terrorist group for the Oct. 7 massacre following uproar from anti-Israel protesters.
Councilman Dan Kalb’s amendment highlighting Hamas’ role in the slaughter of some 1,200 people across southern Israel was rejected 6-2 Monday night, and the proposal was met with jeers from protesters – with some going so far as to spread a conspiracy theory that the Israel Defense Forces had slaughtering Jews to justify the invasion of Gaza.
“Hamas is a resistance organization fighting to liberate the Palestinian people and their land,” said one resident, while another argued that “condemning Hamas is very anti-Arab racism.”
“Calling Hamas a terrorist organization is ridiculous, racist and plays on the genocidal propaganda that floods our media and that we must do everything possible to combat,” another agreed.
“There has been no beheading of babies and rape. Israel killed their own people on October 7,” one woman told the city council.
Hundreds of protesters came out over the Oakland City Council’s resolution for a cease-fire in Gaza. AP
Another woman, who was eventually cut off from speaking, claimed: “The notion that this is a genocide of Jews is a fabricated narrative. Many of those killed on October 7, including children, were killed by the IDF.”
Some critics of the amendment accused Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians.
“I know the price of silence,” said one. “Never again means never again for anyone.”
A male speaker also slammed Kalb’s proposal, claiming it sets a double standard for blaming Hamas for the massacre given the decades of violence that have come to define Israeli-Palestinian relations in the Middle East.
“Hearing them complain about Hamas violence is like hearing a wife beater complain when his wife finally stands up and fights back,” the man said.
A protester claimed that condemning Hamas for the October 7 massacre was racist. AP
Kalb did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
More than 250 people commented publicly on the resolution, and a video compilation of anti-Israel comments and defenses of Hamas quickly went viral.
“Hamas is a terrorist organization. They must be called out for what they are: evil,” California’s Gavin Newsom wrote on X in response to the footage of the disaster.
“When a council member asked to add language condemning Hamas, an outpouring of public comments praising & supporting Hamas ensued. The council then rejected the request to condemn Hamas,” Sen. Bay Area state’s Scott Wiener, another Democrat, wrote at X. “Terrible.”
Oakland’s resolution eventually passed 8-0 without any alleged language against Hamas or Israel, with council member Caroll Fife noting that it went through four drafts to “depoliticize” it.
The city council chose to adopt the resolution without any alleged comments against Hamas or Israel. AP
Instead, the measure asks Congress to support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and ensure the release of all hostages held by Hamas. It also called for more humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territories.
The final resolution calls for an “immediate ceasefire; the release of all hostages; the unrestricted entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza; the restoration of food, water, electricity and medical supplies to Gaza; respect for international law; and calls for a resolution that protects the safety of all civilians who not guilty.”
Oakland is the latest American municipality to vote for such a resolution, joining the likes of Detroit, Atlanta and Providence. Most cities to pass such resolutions have large Arab communities.
The debate comes during an extension to a fragile cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which is set to expire later Wednesday with the release of additional hostages.
Despite negotiators’ claims that both sides appeared ready to extend the ceasefire for another two days, no agreement had been reached as of Wednesday afternoon.
The bill calls on Congress to support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, much of which has been leveled since the war began. AFP via Getty Images
Political leaders on both sides of the aisle have been counting on a surge in antisemitism across the US.
On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) delivered an impassioned floor speech about the rise of anti-Semitism — in which he specifically called out factions of the progressive movement for antisemitic “whistwhistles.”
“Can you understand why Jews isolate themselves when we hear some praising Hamas and chanting its evil slogans? Can you blame us for feeling vulnerable, more than 80 years after Hitler wiped out half the world’s Jewish population?” he asked at one point, referring to the phrase “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
The Senate Democratic leader went on to say that he was disturbed by the description of Hamas’ actions as part of a “decolonization” movement – arguing that Jews did not colonize present-day Israel and that the vast majority of Israelis are or are descended from that country. 600,000 Mizrahi Jews were “forcibly expelled” from Arab countries following the country’s establishment in 1948.
“American Jews are alarmed to see some of our own citizens justifying a brutal terrorist attack because of the actions of the Israeli government — a brutal, bloody and systematic massacre of innocent women, men, children, the elderly,” Schumer said. said.
“Worse still, in some cases, people celebrated what happened, describing it as the destiny that the ‘occupiers’ deserved and calling for ‘glory to the martyrs’ who carried out this heinous attack. That happened here in America.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
