U.S. Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-Carmel Valley) and a delegation of congressional leaders, already in the Middle East on a mission of peace when Hamas attacked inside Israel on Saturday, Oct. 7, made their way into Israel soon after and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials, as well as the family members of victims of the attacks and Americans living in Israel, Panetta’s office announced in a press release on Oct. 11.
The bipartisan delegation, led by Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), had been meeting with leaders from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan and Israel in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain to discuss the Abraham Accords, an effort to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, when the deadly attacks in Israel began, which killed more than 1,200 people, including at least 14 Americans. In addition, over 2,800 people were injured and 150 people taken as hostages.
It was unclear as to whether the delegation could enter Israel in the face of flight cancellations and advice from some officials about traveling there, according to the press release. They conferred with Israeli officials and then devised a way to get into the country by driving from Amman, in Jordan, across the Jordanian-Israeli border.
In addition to meeting with Netanyahu, the delegation also met with the Israeli Leader of the Opposition Yair Lapid, Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen, Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, Israeli Defense Forces Brigadier General O. Settner and Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister Mark Regev.
“Hamas perpetrated a horrific bloodthirsty assault upon the nation of Israel. The savagery, depravity, and inhumanity by Hamas toward the Israeli people during their attack demonstrated their terrorist intent to kill Jews, kill the Jewish Society, and kill any attempts toward peace,” Panetta said in the press release.
“Although the purpose of our trip was to talk about the potential for peace agreements in the Middle East, the attack prompted us to shift our focus to the war. That’s why it was important for our delegation to put boots on the ground in Israel so that we could hear directly from Israelis about the heinous assault upon their people as well as their heroic determination to ensure that it never happens again to their nation,” Panetta said.
“Moreover, the visit allowed us to express that as members of the United States Congress, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel so that they can go toe-to-toe with the terrorists to eradicate Hamas, protect the Jewish society, and promote our humanity.”
Rep. Panetta, fourth from the right, poses for a photo with a bipartisan congressional delegation at the border of Jordan and Israel. The delegation was already in the Middle East when the attacks by Hamas on Israel began. With flights cancelled, and against the advice of some officials, they flew to Jordan and then drove over the border to meet with Israeli leaders in the wake of the attacks.
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>>>"we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel so that they can go toe-to-toe with the terrorists to eradicate Hamas, protect the Jewish society, and promote our humanity.”
What about promoting humanity by protecting the Palestinian society? It is a horrific ploy to equate the Hamas gang with millions of Palestinian civilians. Why is the monstrous persecution of Palestinians by the far-right Israeli government for DECADES being ignored?
Since the U.K. backed, Zionist invasion of Palestine during World War I had conquered the country and corralled the inhabitants into a horrific apartheid state, the monstrous treatment of Palestinians by the criminal Israeli government has been an on-going nightmare. Palestinian civilians, including women, children, journalists and paramedics, have all been targeted and killed. Israel has a consistent policy of allowing 'settlers" to steal the homes of Palestinians, and more than two million Palestinians are locked up in the virtual prison of the tiny Gaza strip, where they are purposely deprived of clean drinking water, medical supplies, sufficient food and frequent Israeli shut offs of electricity.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that since 2008, 308 Israelis have been killed by Palestinians, while 6,407 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers and "settlers." This is a clear view of the massive military superiority that Israel has and their near psychopathic disposition to murder innocent Palestinian civilians.
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