[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 29 (Thursday, February 12, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   CONDOLENCES TO THE SHURRAB FAMILY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PETER WELCH

                               of vermont

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 12, 2009

  Mr. WELCH. Madam Speaker, I recently heard the tragic story of Amer 
Shurrab, a young man from Khan Yunis in Gaza. Amer is a recent graduate 
of Middlebury College, in Vermont.
  On Friday, January 16, Amer's brothers, Kassab and Ibrahim, and 
father, Mohammad, were driving from their farm near the Israeli border 
to their apartment in Khan Yunis. The three men had waited until the 
daily three-hour calm designated by the Israeli Defense Forces before 
beginning their journey. They drove the family's jeep through the city 
and then, without any warning, the car was fired upon by the IDF.
  Kassab, a 28-year-old engineer, was killed almost immediately. His 
father and Ibrahim, an 18-year-old college student, were wounded but 
survived the initial barrage of gunfire. When the two tried to crawl to 
safety, the IDF shot the street around them. An ambulance that they 
managed to call was turned away blocks from the scene. For the next 20 
hours, the two were forced to remain in the jeep.
  Amer's father spread the word to the immediate family, and the family 
did all it could to get help. Family members called Israeli government 
officials, international aid organizations, and human rights groups, 
while Amer's father, still stuck in the jeep, managed to get through to 
local radio stations and BBC Arabic to broadcast his pleas for help 
live on the air. But no help could get through. In the middle of the 
night, Ibrahim Shurrab bled to death in his father's arms. When 
relating his story, Amer repeated one word over and over again to 
describe what happened to his family: cruel. ``It was just so cruel,'' 
he repeated.
  The Israeli government must conduct a full and open investigation of 
the circumstances regarding this horrible tragedy. I am not sure what 
kind of explanation can ever account for such suffering, but those 
responsible for reportedly denying aid to the injured should be held 
accountable and punished accordingly.
  My heart aches for the Shurrab family and all those who have lost 
loved ones in the most recent round of violence. I will remember their 
story and pursue peace in the hope that stories like Amer's not be 
repeated in the future.

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