[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 147 (Friday, November 16, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1793]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  SUPPORTING OUR CLOSEST ALLY, ISRAEL

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                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 16, 2012

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, this week and even today 
Israel's terrorist enemies massively escalated their rocket attacks on 
our country's closest ally, Israel--Hamas has fired its rockets at 
large cities whose population has not been under attack for decades, 
including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, the latter of which had never been 
subject to rocket attack. Sadly, three people have been killed.
  Words cannot express the inhumanity and barbarity of these rocket 
attacks. The number of Israelis who live under daily threat of air 
attack has increased exponentially: more than a third of Israel's 
population lives in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area alone, which was 
last under rocket fire during the first Gulf War.
  This is the moment for America to send a clear message: Hamas's 
rocket attacks are completely and totally unacceptable and unjustified 
and intolerable, their escalation even more so. The Israeli government 
has not only the right but the duty to defend its people. I want to 
recognize and applaud Israel for vigorously doing so, and for taking 
every reasonable precaution to avoid civilian casualties. I want to 
remind my colleagues that Hamas's goal is not to avoid civilian 
casualties, but to initiate conflict that will cause it, so that all 
the people killed, whether Israeli or Palestinian, are in fact Hamas's 
victims. Our hearts and prayers go out to their families.

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