[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 6, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H487-H488]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                PAYING TRIBUTE TO FALLEN SERVICEMEMBERS

  (Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the ultimate 
sacrifice made by five of our Nation's most heroic men and women in 
uniform. Each was defending liberty in dangerous territory, and each 
possessed raw courage, selflessness, and total dedication to duty for 
the sake of our Nation. Each of us is privileged to live under 
liberty's umbrella because of them.
  Special Warfare Operator First Class Christopher Chambers and Navy 
Special Warfare Operator Second Class Nathan Ingram were lost far from 
home in rough waters on the Red Sea on January 11.
  Then, 17 days later, on January 28, an enemy drone targeted Tower 22 
in Jordan. The drone operated by Iranian-backed militia terrorists 
wounded more than 40 U.S. servicemembers, killing 3 of America's 
finest: Staff Sergeant William Rivers, Specialist Kennedy Sanders, and 
Specialist Breonna Moffett.
  While all five hailed from different hometowns, they served together 
for one united purpose: liberty, defending America against all enemies, 
foreign and domestic.
  These brave soldiers and sailors were guarding us against the 
hastening spiderweb of terrorism and tyranny halfway around the world.
  Let us pay homage and honor each of these young men and women for 
their ultimate sacrifice. May they rest in peace.
  May God bless America.
  Madam Speaker, I include in the Record my guest essay.

 Guest Essay: Establishing `Gaza-Palestinian Protectorate' Would Go a 
                                Long Way

                      (By U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur)

       Halfway around the world, the war between Hamas' terrorist 
     units and Israel is a piercing global tragedy. It demands a 
     global response. Yet, ``Peace and Justice'' have eluded 
     solution in this troubled region for over a century. It will 
     be even harder to achieve after this conflagration ends. The 
     extraordinary death toll will resound for generations 
     forward. How does one create a lasting peace borne of such 
     fierce, enduring hatreds?
       The invasion Hamas' fighters launched from Palestinian Gaza 
     into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 broke the cease-fire that had 
     tensely hung over that very troubled region. More than 1,200 
     innocent Israeli civilians were slaughtered in a barbaric 
     attack, with more than 100 Israeli and some American hostages 
     still remaining in captivity. More than 250,000 Israelis were 
     evacuated and displaced from their homes. In Gaza, 1.7 
     million Gazans have subsequently been displaced with Hamas 
     health officials claiming more than 25,000 civilians dead, 
     and more than 60,000 injured with two-thirds of the victims 
     being women and children.
       How does any army defeat a hostile enemy positioned amidst 
     a civilian population and underground in a vast ``bunker 
     city'' with miles of interconnected tunnels, dug for purposes 
     of war, not peace?
       Over 140,000 Hezbollah terrorist forces supplied by Iran, 
     are positioned in southern Lebanon, shooting rockets down on 
     Israel now. It is no accident Yemen's terrorist Houthi

[[Page H488]]

     adherents, also supplied by Iran, have been purposefully 
     shelling private cargo ships as well as targeting U.S. naval 
     vessels in the Red Sea to disrupt global trade in this 
     conflicted region. Russia's role in exacerbating resurgent 
     unrest was made clear when top Gen. Sergei Shoigu recently 
     visited Iran. And a Hamas delegation was in Moscow not long 
     after it attacked Israel.
       Across the Middle East, a spiderweb of terrorism is 
     hastening, hell-bent on evil. Iranian drones and missiles are 
     being used against Ukraine, Israel, the United States, and 
     our allies in Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, and Jordan. North Korean 
     missiles are likewise in use against Ukraine. The global 
     distinction between tyranny and liberty could not be clearer. 
     The world community of nations must not allow terrorist 
     forces enabled by Iran and Russia to foment unrest and 
     carnage. The sacred boundaries of nations must be respected, 
     defended, and enforced.
       The history of the Middle East instructs that former 
     adversarial nations can make peace among themselves. For 
     nearly five decades, dating back to my days of service in the 
     Carter administration, proposals for a two-State solution 
     have been advanced for Israel and Palestine.
       Ironically, the depth and brutality of this present 
     conflict may create an opening for a far-reaching solution. 
     If the world community could spend as much money on peace as 
     it has on war, both the Israelis and Palestinians could have 
     thriving homelands.
       To move forward, I propose that the United Nations, or a 
     coalition of willing nations, begin to negotiate a ``Gaza-
     Palestinian Protectorate.'' The parties involved should aim 
     to negotiate a long-lasting solution to the conflict in Gaza, 
     address challenges in the West Bank, and divide the contested 
     territory securing their existence with an International 
     Multilateral Security Force to separate warring factions.
       If the civilized world could achieve this with a divided 
     Korea, why not with Palestine and Israel?
       The goals of the Protectorate would be fourfold:
       (1) an international coalition of nations should be 
     assembled and involved in organizing its administration and 
     staffing;
       (2) Gaza would be demilitarized of weapons, war, tunnels, 
     and fortifications;
       (3) Hamas would have no role, politically, 
     administratively, or economically;
       (4) Palestinians from Gaza should be involved in the 
     administration of the Protectorate's on-site operations, 
     including its police forces.
       The Protectorate would have three immediate tasks. The 
     first would be to quickly secure resources and provide food, 
     water, shelter, and medical care to the almost 2.3 million 
     people of Gaza.
       The second is to provide an international military 
     coalition that can demilitarize Gaza as quickly as possible. 
     Gaza must never again be a threat to its neighbors.
       The third is to physically separate Gaza and Israel, by 
     creating a demilitarized zone between the two, that is 
     virtually impenetrable, as is the DMZ between North and South 
     Korea. As part of the separation, the infrastructure to 
     provide water, sewage treatment, and energy needed by Gaza 
     should be located in Gaza and staffed by the people of Gaza.
       One of the long-term missions could be to rebuild what is 
     now a destroyed area under a new vision of peace and 
     prosperity. Gaza has many undeveloped resources, the primary 
     of which is its land and location. While small in size, Gaza 
     is located in one of the most attractive parts of the 
     Mediterranean, with miles of undeveloped, beautiful beaches 
     that could become a recreational center of the region.
       With peace and stability, Gaza could become a financial and 
     economic hub that attracts capital and businesses from around 
     the world. Gaza and the West Bank have the thousands of 
     workers needed to rebuild what has been destroyed along with 
     necessary staff to renew the economy. A ``Gaza Development 
     Authority'' as part of the Protectorate could create and 
     administer a long-term development plan to bring prosperity 
     and transparency that would forestall the corruption that so 
     often accompanies unfettered development.
       Hope must arise from this cruel war. Old diplomacy, and old 
     solutions should be shelved. They should be replaced with a 
     forward-looking approach that could bring peace, justice, and 
     prosperity to this war-torn region. Succeeding would give 
     hope to a civilized world that hungers for peace in these 
     troubled lands.

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