Elham Asaad Bauras
Two former Biden Administration officials, who resigned last year in protest of the President’s Gaza conflict policy, have escalated their activism by launching a lobbying group and political action committee (PAC) to push for a transformation of US policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Josh Paul, previously a senior official in the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, and Tariq Habash, a former policy advisor at the US Department of Education, emphasise that while American public opinion increasingly opposes the unrestricted flow of US weapons to Israel, many lawmakers are still out of touch.
Their newly formed PAC, “A New Policy,” seeks to back candidates who focus on aligning US foreign policy with principles of human rights and equality. One of their key objectives is to ensure that US arms transfers to all countries in the Middle East, including Israel, adhere strictly to both US and international laws.
The push for policy reform comes amid a broader wave of discontent. In early February 2024, over 800 American and European civil servants united in an unprecedented, coordinated protest of their governments’ stance on the Israel-Gaza conflict. The civil servants released a letter condemning their governments’ support of Israel’s actions, calling for a re-examination of policies and respect for international humanitarian law.
The unwavering support Washington has shown for Israel’s military operations in Gaza—and more recently in Lebanon—has become a central issue for Muslim and Arab voters. These voters, who had overwhelmingly supported Biden in 2020, are now signalling they may not back Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the upcoming election.
“American voters are clear: they do not want to be complicit in this humanitarian catastrophe, and a majority want to end the transfer of lethal weapons used to kill Palestinian civilians,” Habash said.
Muslim and Arab communities across the U.S. have been calling on Biden to demand a permanent ceasefire. As Harris gears up for a showdown against Republican Donald Trump on November 5, polling suggests the race will be close.
Since the deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, the US has supplied billions of dollars in military aid to Israel, reaffirming its position as Israel’s largest arms provider. Meanwhile, Israel’s sustained retaliation against Gaza—home to 2.3 million people—has turned the region into a wasteland. Palestinian health officials estimate that more than 42,000 people have been killed, with countless others displaced amidst the destruction.
Photo: Tarek Habash (right) and Josh Paul resigned last year in protest of President Joe Biden’s policies on Gaza (Credit: social media)
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