Washington, D.C. (July 3, 2023) – Jewish Voice for Peace Action condemns the deadly Israeli military invasion and attack on the Palestinian city of Jenin on Monday. In the early hours of Monday morning, over 1,000 Israeli ground forces invaded the densely populated city of Jenin, including the crowded Jenin refugee camp. Early reports say that at least ten Palestinians, including children, have been killed.
The Israeli military has cut off all exits from the refugee camp and is preventing ambulances from reaching critically injured Palestinians. They have damaged the infrastructure and interrupted Jenin’s water and electricity supplies, bulldozed homes, ripped up roads, and attacked journalists reporting on the invasion as well as the Jenin Freedom Theater, where families were seeking refuge. Today’s military assault follows two weeks of continuous violent attacks by Israeli settler mobs on scores of Palestinian villages across the occupied West Bank; according to the United Nations, in 2023 there have been an average of three such attacks every day.
We are sickened by these brutal attacks, which represent a horrifying escalation and the largest invasion of a Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank since 2002. Prime Minister Netanyahu has already stated that this invasion will last “as long as it takes.” As American Jews, we are enraged by the Biden administration’s refusal to condemn these attacks and by the U.S. government’s ongoing complicity in Israel’s violations of international law and war crimes, including the $3.8 billion in entirely unconditional funding which the U.S. sends the Israeli military every year.
“The invasion of Jenin is another example of the way the Israeli government is working hand-in-glove with rightwing settlers to terrorize Palestinians and drive them from their homes and land. As a Jewish organization, we refuse to sit idly by while Palestinian children and families are hiding in their homes — sheltering from rampaging settlers and Israeli warplanes alike.”
Stefanie Fox, Executive Director of JVP Action
“The U.S. sends $3.8 billion in military funding to the Israeli government annually with no questions asked. Last night, that same military attacked a densely populated city and refugee camp. The Biden administration’s support for these actions and unwillingness to take a single step to hold the Israeli government accountable is shameful. It is time to end the unconditional flow of U.S. military funds and weapons to Israel’s apartheid government.”
Beth Miller, Political Director of JVP Action