WASHINGTON, D.C. – While speaking from the Senate Floor this evening on the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) announced he would not attend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s joint address to Congress on Wednesday. In his statement, Senator Welch explained that while he welcomes a constructive discussion on how to end the conflict and achieve lasting peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, he is not interested in participating in a political stunt. He urged Congress to refocus its efforts on ending the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. 

Watch Senator Welch’s speech below: 

Senator Welch’s remarks, as read, are included below: 

“Madam President, in recent weeks the attention of the American people has been a rapidly evolving campaign for the presidency issues. But while our national media and the focus has shifted it is important that we do not lose sight of the crisis in Gaza, where innocent people have suffered one calamity after another.

“Also, in recent weeks, thousands of defenseless, homeless people sheltering in schools—including one located in an area reportedly designated by the Israeli military as a humanitarian safe zone—have been targeted by the Israeli military with missiles supplied by the United States. 

“Regrettably, scores have been killed, hundreds have been wounded. What little is left of Gaza’s demolished hospitals have no capacity to properly treat injuries.  

“Children are particularly vulnerable in this conflict. Thousands of children have been killed. Thousands have sustained severe injuries that require surgery or advanced medical care, and many suffer from other life-threatening illnesses, like cancer, that are going completely untreated. 

“In the past nine months, only 19 of these children have been allowed to leave Gaza. And that is shocking. 

“Today, my colleagues and I sent a letter to the Ambassadors of Israel and Egypt, calling on them to work together, with the full cooperation of the United States, so these children can leave Gaza and get the medical care they desperately need. And I urge their governments to do that. Gaza’s children have paid far too high a price in this war. 

“Madam President, negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have been on again and off again. Each time we hear of a possible breakthrough, one side or the other makes a new demand and then weeks pass without further words of progress, and the suffering continues. I hope, soon, they will reach agreement on a ceasefire. 

“In the meantime, it is hard to imagine the depth of misery suffered by the Palestinian people. And it’s also hard to imagine the depth of misery suffered by the hostages, trapped underground for nine months, subjected to constant psychological and physical abuse by their captors.  

“Madam President, I’ve spoken many times about the war in Gaza.  

“It was, in my view, poorly conceived with vague, goals that were nothing more than slogans—not unlike our own failed wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

“Prime Minister Netanyahu was warned not to repeat our mistakes. But instead of heeding that advice, he’s pursued a scorched Earth strategy that has destroyed Gaza and killed tens of thousands of people who had absolutely nothing to do with the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7th. Two million destitute people are homeless, suffering from acute hunger, and facing the real possibility of death at any moment.  

“And Mr. Netanyahu—and I use this word intentionally—his extremist ministers have divided the Israeli people, divided the American people, and damaged Israel’s standing on the global stage. 

“Mr. Netanyahu’s war has been carried out with our warplanes, our tanks, our guns, our bombs, missiles, and bullets. It has been carried out in a manner shockingly inconsistent with the principle of proportionality, a central element of international humanitarian law that is designed to protect the innocent. International law that Israel and the United States are both bound to respect.  

“The counter response that we hear is that because Hamas fighters hide in tunnels and use civilian houses and buildings to carry out their attacks, anything is a legitimate target. Even, apparently, if it means killing 50 Palestinians; wounding 100, in order to kill one Hamas combatant.  

“Of course, Israel has a right to go after those involved in the October 7th attack. I support that. Hamas mercilessly slaughtered 1,200 innocent Israelis. And the perpetrators of those atrocities must not escape punishment. But that does not give Israel the right to use weapons supplied by the United States to kill 30 times that number of innocent Palestinians, as though their lives are worth nothing. That’s wrong. 

“Meanwhile, in the West Bank, attacks against Palestinians by Israeli settlers—illegal Israeli settlers—have skyrocketed, and hundreds have been killed.  

“Last week, Madam President, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel’s decades-long occupation of the West Bank violates international law and amounts to annexation. The Court called on Israel to cease new settlement activity—which is also the policy of the United States— and I call on it to end the occupation. 

“Madam President, as often happens, people’s attention fades or shifts to other priorities close to home. It’s understandable, but that’s also why it is important to remember:  

“To remember that the bombs keep falling and an appalling number of civilians keep dying in Gaza, in a war that has gone on far, far too long.  

“To remember that this war, in which the United States is complicit by providing these arms—as orchestrated by a Prime Minister who has no strategy, no strategy for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. A prime minister who has no vision for the future, who has acted deliberately to undercut U.S. policy at every turn. And still, he is invited here, to this Congress.  

“I will not be attending Prime Minister Netanyahu’s address tomorrow.  

“While I welcome a constructive discussion on how to end this conflict and achieve lasting peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, I am not interested in participating in a political stunt. 

“We, the United States, have a moral responsibility to do everything we can to help end this war and prevent further loss of innocent lives. That includes holding our allies and partners to the same standards that we expect of ourselves, and the rest of the world. 

“Madam President, I yield back.”

###