[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 37 (Thursday, February 29, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1054-S1055]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Israel

  Ms. WARREN. Mr. President, I rise today in pursuit of peace in the 
Middle East. After nearly 5 months of war in Gaza, the human suffering 
must end. Just today, Americans woke up to the news that Israeli troops 
had opened fire on Palestinians desperate for humanitarian aid, killing 
dozens and adding to the more than 30,000 people in Gaza who have been 
killed during this conflict.
  Hamas's October 7 terrorist attack on Israel took more than a 
thousand lives. Israel, like every nation, has the right to defend 
itself and the right to prevent another terrorist attack like this one 
from ever occurring again.
  Other rights are important as well. The people who live in the Middle 
East deserve a lasting peace and deserve to live their lives with 
dignity and self-determination.
  For decades, the United States Government has supported a two-state 
solution to guarantee those rights for both Israelis and Palestinians--
two states for two people. For years, I have spoken out against the 
diminishing prospects for a two-state solution. For years, Palestinians 
have been poorly served by their leaders, both in the West Bank and in 
Gaza. For years, even before October 7, Hamas's governance of Gaza was 
a major impediment to peace. And also for years, I have believed that 
Israel's long-term strategic interests were endangered by Prime 
Minister Netanyahu's leadership.
  Since October 7, it has only gotten worse. Prime Minister Netanyahu 
and his rightwing war cabinet have created a massive humanitarian 
disaster, pushing the region even further away from a two-state 
solution. Indiscriminate bombings in Gaza have killed tens of thousands 
of Palestinian civilians, wiping out entire families and leaving 
thousands of children orphaned. Nearly 2 million people have been 
displaced, and 45 percent of the residential buildings in Gaza have 
been destroyed. The Israeli Government's refusal to allow adequate 
humanitarian aid into Gaza has left hundreds of thousands of people on 
the brink of starvation.
  And still, more than 100 hostages are held by Hamas. The Israeli 
Government's top priority should have been to bring those hostages 
home, but, instead, Prime Minister Netanyahu focused on revenge. He 
publicly invoked the plight of hostages to justify indiscriminate 
bombing that thwarts the negotiations that would bring them home. This 
is a betrayal of the families whose loved ones are still held hostage 
by Hamas.
  Netanyahu's opposition to a two-state solution is fierce and 
longstanding. For decades, he has undercut Palestinian independence. He 
has deliberately propped up Hamas to try to keep the Palestinian people 
divided. He approved Qatar's payments to Hamas--payments that may have 
been used for Hamas's military operations. He expanded settlements in 
the West Bank, turning the region into a patchwork of disconnected 
parts that undermine Palestinian hopes for a united homeland.
  The result has been a vicious cycle of violence. That is why, for 
years, I have advocated that U.S. military aid should help Israel and 
Palestine move toward peace, not subsidize policies that move peace 
further out of reach.
  Today, Netanyahu is doubling down on his opposition to peace. The 
Prime Minister has openly and directly rejected U.S. policy. He has 
promised he will not compromise and he will hold fast to his rejection 
of a Palestinian State.
  Under his leadership, the Knesset has backed him to the hilt. The 
Prime Minister has also tried to pressure Egypt and other countries in 
the region to accept Gazan war refugees, raising the specter that his 
government is working toward permanently expelling Palestinians from 
their homes. He has insisted that Israel and Israel alone must control 
the entire area of the Jordan River, leaving no room for a Palestinian 
State.
  And the fallout from his bombing campaigns is not limited to Gaza. He 
has given cover for Hezbollah, the Houthis, and other terrorist groups 
to expand the conflict.
  The bottom line is clear: Netanyahu's leadership in this war has been 
a moral and strategic failure that is in direct opposition to American 
policy and American values.
  Netanyahu cannot bomb his way to the return of the hostages. 
Netanyahu cannot bomb his way to security in the region. Netanyahu 
cannot bomb his way to peace.
  The only path to protect Israel's long-term security and to ensure 
that Palestinians have equal rights, equal freedom, and the self-
determination they deserve is a two-state solution--two states for two 
peoples.
  This has been the stated policy of the U.S. Government dating back 
decades, and if this far-right Israeli Government does not share that 
goal, then it is our responsibility to make clear that the Netanyahu 
government does not get a blank check for U.S. aid.
  That is why I have been fighting to condition aid to Israel and 
protect civilians in Gaza. Over the last few months, I have called for 
Israel to prevent harm to civilians and for accountability when U.S. 
weapons are used to target refugee camps and safe zones. I have 
challenged the administration's decision to bypass Congress in 
approving arms transfers to Israel. I have worked with my colleagues, 
led by Senator Van Hollen, on an amendment to condition aid to Israel.
  Earlier this month, President Biden delivered a critical step, 
issuing a national security memorandum that makes clear that any 
country that receives aid from the United States must follow 
international law, including Israel. This is a good policy, but 
enforcement is crucial. Oversight of its implementation is necessary to 
ensure that it is a meaningful step and not just lip service.
  Netanyahu has made clear he plans to launch a military offensive in 
Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians with nowhere safe to go 
are currently taking refuge. The administration has warned that 
expanding operations to Rafah would be a ``disaster'' that the U.S. 
Government does not support.
  Meanwhile, humanitarian aid remains strangled and hunger and disease 
are sweeping Gaza.
  Netanyahu is on dangerous ground. Every day that he continues, more 
innocent civilians in Gaza suffer and are killed, and thousands more 
Americans say ``enough'' and call on our government to end U.S. aid for 
such actions.
  President Biden has indicated that we are on the verge of a cease-
fire that would free the hostages and would allow desperately needed 
humanitarian aid in. I hope that is true, and it is a meaningful step 
toward an enduring peace.
  But until then, the United States has a responsibility to ensure that 
our weapons aren't used to target innocent children and families in 
Gaza. We also have a responsibility to ensure that our support is used 
to advance long-term peace and stability in the region.
  We recognize that it takes two parties to negotiate a meaningful 
peace, and we should also urge the allies of the Palestinians to do the 
same. All nations should push in the same direction: Condition aid, 
return the hostages, resume the cease-fire, and advance peace through a 
two-state solution.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. SCHATZ. Mr. President, before I begin my remarks, in the Hawaii 
Legislature, there was a common custom to ask the presiding officer 
that the previous speaker's remarks were adopted

[[Page S1055]]

as if they were my own. And although I didn't listen to the entirety--I 
am not prepared to do that because I only got the back end--I just 
wanted to commend the senior Senator from Massachusetts for her moral 
clarity about the conduct of the war in Israel and the fact that it is 
a strategic and moral failure, and that the Prime Minister of Israel 
must be held to account for the fact that so many people are suffering 
so unnecessarily.