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More than half of House Democrats endorse Biden’s backing of Israel in Hamas war
WASHINGTON (JTA) — More than half of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to President Joe Biden endorsing his policy of backing Israel in its war against Hamas, mounting a firewall against calls from the party’s left to pressure Israel into a ceasefire.
The signatories include several outspoken critics of Israel, as well as all 24 Jews in the House Democratic caucus.
The letter, dated Friday, was spearheaded by three Jewish members, Jerry Nadler and Dan Goldman of New York and Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and was signed by 131 lawmakers.
“We stand with you in supporting Israel and are ready to provide whatever assistance the state and people of Israel need to defend themselves and to ensure that hostages return home and those who perpetrated these crimes against humanity are held accountable,” the letter says.
On Friday, Biden asked Congress for $10.4 billion in defense assistance for Israel as it counterattacks Hamas, which invaded Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 people, mostly civilians, wounding thousands and taking more than 200 hostages.
Biden has said he backs Israel’s goal of destroying Hamas. A number of progressives on the party’s left oppose additional defense assistance for Israel and have led calls for a ceasefire, coming out to back protesters at the U.S. Capitol last week. The letter does not mention a ceasefire.
In a sign of how much the atrocities of Oct. 7 have shifted the political landscape, some of the party’s most insistent critics of Israel have signed onto this letter. Those include Betty McCollum of Minnesota, who has long proposed cutting some assistance to Israel as long as it keeps Palestinian minors in detention; Raul Grijalva of Arizona, who in 2021 was one of just a handful of lawmakers to vote against $1 billion in anti-missile defense funding for Israel after its last war with Hamas; and Greg Casar of Texas, who just last week was reported to be among 18 Democrats backing a ceasefire.
After declaring its willingness to support Israel, the letter also goes to great lengths to express support for Biden’s efforts to get humanitarian assistance to Gaza. Biden, who made a lightning visit to Israel last week, has made clear to Israel that it must not block humanitarian assistance coming in from the Egypt-Gaza border and that it must abide by the laws of war.
“We are grateful as well for your clear statements regarding the fundamental importance of ensuring that the humanitarian needs of the civilian population of Gaza are met, and that all possible steps are being taken to ensure the safety of civilians and noncombatants in the Strip,” the letter says. “Reportedly, more than 3,000 people have been killed and more than 9,700 wounded in Gaza, making it imperative that we act to prevent further loss of innocent lives. We agree with you that Israel’s response must be in accordance with international law and our shared democratic values.”
The letter concludes by saying that any long-term solution must be diplomatic and not military. Biden has also said that he does not want Israel to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, and in recent days Israeli officials have indicated that they have no appetite for reoccupation. Israel captured the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Six-Day War and withdrew in 2005; Hamas took power there after a brief civil war in 2007.
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The post More than half of House Democrats endorse Biden’s backing of Israel in Hamas war appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.