Washblog

On January 28th, Rep. John Olver (MA-01) sent a "Dear Colleague" letter to Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton requesting that the State Department release funds to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) for reconstuction and humanitarian assistance in Gaza.  The letter was signed by a total of 63 Democratic House members, including two members of the Washington Delegation.

The Washington signatories were Jim McDermott (WA-07) and Brian Baird (WA-03).  The full text of the letter, as well as the full list of signatories can be found here.

As a result of this request, President Obama, yesterday, authorized the use of $20.3 million from The US Emergency Refugee and Migration Association (ERMA) for humanitarian needs in Gaza.  $13.5 million went to UNRWA, $6 million went to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and $800,000 went to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

These Washington Congressmembers, as well as the rest of the signatories, are all strong supporters of both the Israeli and Palestinian peoples.  They are speaking out to help lessen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and to commend President Obama on his early committment to the peace process between the Israelis and the Palestinians.  We need to help these candidates as they face pressure from the anti-peace community.  Please visit our fundraising page and contribute to these members, as well as any (or all) of our candidates.

In peace.