For An End To The War In Gaza And Lasting Peace, Security And Self-Determination For Israel And Palestine

RESOLVED, that the AFT issue the following statement:

The histories of the Israeli Jewish and Palestinian peoples are filled with heart-rending stories of oppression and the terrible loss of human life. Over the last 100 years, those histories have been intertwined in an ongoing, shared tragedy, with the latest chapter beginning on Oct. 7 and the war in Gaza. Nearly 1,200 Israeli Jews, Israeli Palestinians, Israeli Bedouins and foreign guest workers, including children, died on Oct. 7: It was the most significant mass murder of Jews since the Shoah, the Nazi Holocaust during World War II. Over 35,000 Palestinians—and most painfully, over 8,000 Palestinian children—have died in the ensuing war in Gaza: This is more than double the number of Palestinians who died in the Nakba, the event of Palestinian displacement in 1948.

In the face of this unspeakable tragedy, the AFT says: the war, the violence and the bloodshed must end, and they must end now. We repeat our call of January of this year, which has only become more morally urgent over the subsequent months: for an immediate bilateral cease-fire, guaranteed by the international community; for the immediate delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid—food, medical supplies, clothing and emergency shelter—to the people of Gaza; and for the immediate release of all Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

There are truths that define the path not only to an end of this horrific war, but also to a resolution of 100 years of conflict and bloodshed between Israel and Palestine. There is no miliary solution to this conflict, no way forward that rests on the domination of one people and the subordination of the other, no force of arms that can bring lasting peace and security. The only way forward is one that recognizes that there are two peoples of approximately equal size that reside in this small part of the world, each with historic ties to the land, each with the right to live in freedom and peace, and each with the right to national self-determination—including the right to govern themselves in their own state. A cease-fire must be the first step on a journey that concludes with two states for two people: peace, freedom and self-determination will be possessed by both peoples, or they will remain out of reach for all.

We support a cease-fire accepted by both Israel and Hamas that will bring a permanent close to this war, as advocated by President Biden on May 31, and begin the process of achieving a lasting peace. Further, we support that U.S. aid to Israel should be used only for purposes that conform with American and international law: American military aid cannot be used in ways that facilitate the seizure of Palestinian land, the violent dispossession of Palestinian communities, and the annexation of occupied Palestinian territory. Nor can U.S. military aid be used to harm civilian populations.

An end to this war has proven so difficult because of the absence of a will to end it. Hamas has demonstrated a readiness to sacrifice Palestinian life on a massive scale when it thinks it will serve its ends: It began this war with its attacks on Oct. 7, and it has continually insisted that it be ended on its terms. The Palestinian people have suffered under the dictatorial rule of Hamas, which has brutally repressed and eliminated its Palestinian opponents. It is not a credible partner for peace, security or a two-state solution; the Palestinian leadership to accomplish these objectives will come from other sources.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and his far-right government are an obstacle to achieving lasting peace, freedom, and security. He has opposed a two-state solution, and stood idle as extremist setters have engaged in violence and land theft against Palestinians on the West Bank, and as they have cruelly blocked emergency food aid to Gaza. Netanyahu has an interest in prolonging the war to escape the public scrutiny of his colossal failure to protect Israel’s citizens and his own pending criminal prosecution. While Israel’s initial cause of war—self-defense against the criminal acts of Oct. 7—was just, the ways in which the Netanyahu government has prosecuted it—its sanctioning of indiscriminate and disproportionate violence, resulting in a massive civilian death toll—has made it unjust. It is past time for an election so that Israelis can choose leaders committed to democracy, security and a peace process.

The AFT supports those forces in Israel and in Palestine that seek a different future for themselves—a democratic future where Israelis and Palestinians can both live in dignity, with peace and self-determination for all. We reaffirm our work with civil society organizations and unions in Israel and Palestine—such as the Hand-in-Hand schools, Standing Together, and the Parents Circle-Families Forum—that are committed to that different future, and working to bring it into a reality. Rather than turn away and divest from Israel and Palestine, now is the moment to rededicate ourselves to support for that future, starting with the reconstruction of Gaza and the West Bank, focusing on education and healthcare.