Haaretz: Congressmen Demand Obama Press Israel Ease Gaza Blockade
Date : 27/1/2010 Time : 13:14

TEL AVIV, January 27, 2010 (WAFA)- Israeli Daily Newspaper Haaretz said, today, that a group of Congress men have apposed President Barrack Obama with a letter singed by them to put pressure on Israel to ease the siege of the Gaza Strip. This initiative proposal was lead by Democratic representatives Jim McDermott and Keith Ellison, who is the first Muslim to be become a Congress man.



Haaretz explained that in the letter, both congress men said that despite the Israeli needs of securing its boarders, it does not have the right to address the residents of Gaza strip with mass punishment.



They also requested President Obama to press for immediate relief for the citizens and an ease on movement of those who are under the siege as an urgent component of his broader Middle East peace efforts, the paper continued.



Moreover, they demanded allowing importing construction materials in order to rebuild what had been demolished and damaged through the latest Israeli Offensive against the Gaza Strip, according to Haaretz.



Ellison has harshly criticized the House of Representatives decision to reject the Goldstone report, arguing that the report had presented pure facts and recommendations for the future, Haaretz added, over time, the rejection had hurt the Obama’s administration roll as an honest mediator in the peace process in the Middle East.



In addition to members of Congress, several leftist organizations also signed the letter, including Americans for Peace Now and J Street.



In addition, the Daily added that, “a letter signed by 33 members of Congress was sent to U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to raise the issue with Israel of Gazan students who are having difficulty studying at universities in the West Bank due to the lack of free passage between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.”



Haaretz concluded that the U.S State Department response to the letter was, that education is an a essential right and crucial for moderation.