A coalition of Israeli mothers whose children are fighting against Hamas is pressing the Biden administration to halt all humanitarian aid to the embattled Gaza Strip, citing the Iran-backed terror group’s interception of humanitarian supplies meant to aid civilians.
"The aid going into Gaza does the exact opposite of what you want it to do. It enables Hamas to keep fighting by keeping Hamas terrorists supplied," the organization, Mothers of Israel Defense Forces Soldiers, wrote in a letter sent last week to the White House and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. "The fuel going into Gaza enables Hamas terrorists to run their generators that keep air circulating in the underground tunnels, prolonging the war and placing our soldiers in unnecessary jeopardy."
The plea from Israeli mothers comes as the Biden administration—which has sent more than $100 million in U.S. aid since the war broke out in October—pressures Israel to pump humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, where it is stolen by Hamas militants and withheld from civilians in need. The Israeli mothers say that the United States is prolonging Israel’s war against Hamas by providing it with the resources necessary to continue fighting. They also ask the Biden administration to stop leaning on Israel to preemptively wind down its war, saying a ceasefire will allow "our genocidal enemies to regroup, rebuild and reconstitute their capacity to murder our people."
While the Biden administration last week paused taxpayer funding for the United Nations Palestinian aid organization following allegations its employees participated in Hamas's massacre, this comprises just a portion of the aid America is pumping into Gaza.
During the past week, hundreds of Israeli citizens—many of whom lost family members during Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist rampage—have been protesting at the Kerem Shalom border crossing, hoping to block humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip. They also protested outside of the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv during Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s most recent visit. The letter to the White House is another attempt to convince the Biden administration its policies are wrongheaded, and indicates that a portion of Israelis view the United States as emboldening Hamas.
The Israeli mothers say there should be "no further entry of humanitarian aid or fuel that finally goes to Hamas. Shortening the life of Hamas to save our hostages and prevent numerous deaths and injuries on both sides is the true humanitarian act."
Israel estimates that 60 to 70 percent of the aid entering Gaza is seized by Hamas. But aid flows into the embattled territory due primarily to pressure from the Biden administration, which is reportedly considering slowing arms sales to Israel in order to end its operations against Hamas.
"It is not clear at all why the Biden administration is insisting and pressuring Israel to supply aid, especially since they are in agreement with Israel that Hamas needs to be eradicated, and yet their behavior is inconsistent with their official statements," Mirit Hoffman, one of the mothers who signed the letter, told the Free Beacon. "The Biden administration policy is completely contradicting their stated goals."
Videos captured in the Gaza Strip show Hamas terrorists firing at civilians as they attempt to access aid trucks. There are also reports of Hamas militants beating Gazan civilians as they try to obtain food, water, and other basic necessities.
"For others to receive aid," the activists note in their letter, "they need to stand with Hamas and help it fight against Israel."
The mothers also say that "Israel has to keep fighting until all of our War Cabinet goals are achieved: Hamas is defeated, and our 136 hostages are freed."
Aid to the Gaza Strip, they argue, is prolonging the war and creating a situation where Israel will be forced to launch another operation against Hamas in the coming months or years.
"We do not want our sons and daughters to be called on to fight and risk their lives in another six months, or a year or two years, because we did not finish the job today," they wrote. "We are unwilling to stand idly by and watch the war end in stalemate with Evil, or a ceasefire that allows our genocidal enemies to regroup, rebuild and reconstitute their capacity to murder our people."
Pressure must also be applied on Egypt to allow Gazans stuck in the war zone to flee into third countries, according to the activists.
"Gazan civilians are barred from seeking and receiving safety in third countries, even as they strongly express their desire to leave," they wrote.