Rather than providing aid, the U.S. should ensure Gaza is subjected to nuclear bombing – U.S. senator says

Apr 02, 2024 News

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THE GUARDIAN – Rather than provide humanitarian aid in Gaza, the US should ensure it is subjected to nuclear bombing the way that “Nagasaki and Hiroshima” were at the end of the second world war, a Republican congressman said in shocking remarks that were recorded recently at a gathering with a relatively small group of his constituents.

The comments by US House representative Tim Walberg of Michigan drew condemnation from progressive political quarters, including from some who expressed disbelief that a former Christian pastor would advocate for what they called the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. “A sitting US rep in a secret town hall feels comfortable musing privately about genocide,” said a user on Twitter/X who circulated video of Walberg’s comments late Friday. A reply to that comment read: “Exactly what Jesus would do, right?”

In a statement Sunday, Walberg argued that the media had misreported his comments and set him up to be misinterpreted. Yet he said he was unapologetic about his belief that Israel should win “as swiftly as possible”. Entries on Walberg’s congressional calendar – along with videos on social media – establish that he met with members of the public in Dundee, Michigan, on 25 March. As Mediaite recounted Saturday, a clip of the session that was posted on YouTube and other sites, and recorded by an activist, showed Walberg telling his audience that the US should not spend a “dime” on humanitarian aid in Gaza, where Israel has been carrying out a military campaign for months.

The aid would be better spent on supporting Israel, which Walberg labeled the US’s “greatest ally, arguably, anywhere in the world”. “It should be like Nagasaki and Hiroshima,” Walberg said, alluding to the Japanese cities where the US dropped atomic bombs at the end of the second world war, killing hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom were civilians. “Get it over quick.”

Walberg also spoke in favour of affording similar treatment to Ukraine, which has been defending itself from a Russian military invasion since 2022. But Walberg said the purpose there would be to topple Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s forces expeditiously rather than spend the bulk of US “funding for Ukraine … for humanitarian purposes” as the war there dragged out.

“Defeat Putin quick,” Walberg said.

Once video footage of Walberg’s pronouncements went viral, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) issued a statement denouncing the congressman’s declarations as a “clear call to genocide”. “This … should be condemned by all Americans who value human life and international law,” Cair’s executive director, Dawud Walid, said in a statement.

Walid, whose group is the US’s largest Muslim civil rights organization, added: “To so casually call for what would result in the killing of every human being in Gaza sends the chilling message that Palestinian lives have no value.” Walberg on Sunday denied advocating for the use of nuclear weapons. He said the quicker Israel and Ukraine defeat Hamas and Russia, respectively, “the fewer innocent lives will be caught in the crossfire”.

“In a shortened clip, I used a metaphor to convey the need for both Israel and Ukraine to win their wars as swiftly as possible,” Walberg said in part in a statement that did not address how to avoid killing civilians with nuclear bombs. “The use of this metaphor, along with the removal of context, distorted my message, but I fully stand by these beliefs and stand by our allies.”

Israel began carrying out an air and ground onslaught in Gaza after Hamas attacked on 7 October, killing more than 1,100 Israelis and taking hostages. The military strikes in Gaza have killed more than 30,000 Palestinians, and the US said Friday that the Israeli campaign had probably already pushed the area into famine.

Some of the Joe Biden White House’s fellow Democrats have been increasingly pressuring the president to cut off the almost $4bn in military aid that the US provides annually to Israel, which has persistently hindered the delivery of humanitarian relief in Gaza. On 26 March, the US abstained from a United Nations vote that saw 14 other members ratify a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, leaving Israel nearly isolated on the global political stage.

Nonetheless, within days, Reuters reported that Biden’s administration had authorized the transfer of billions of dollars worth of bombs and fighter jets to Israel, whom Republicans in the US like Walberg generally support steadfastly. “We should be resourcing Israel just like they want to,” Walberg said in part at the meeting in Dundee.  Walberg was first elected to Congress in 2007. He reportedly entered the year with more than $1.1m in campaign funds as he prepared to seek a ninth term in the US House.

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• bombing, Gaza, nuclear, Senator, Tim Walberg

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