|
THE SENATE |
S.C.R. NO. |
13 |
|
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024 |
S.D. 1 |
|
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
SENATE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
URGING THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND MEMBERS OF HAWAII'S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION TO SUPPORT AN IMMEDIATE AND PERMANENT CEASEFIRE IN GAZA.
WHEREAS, all human life is precious and the targeting of non-combatants in a conflict zone is in violation of rule 1 of customary international humanitarian law; and
WHEREAS, on January 26, 2024, the world's highest court, the International Court of Justices declared that Palestinians in Gaza were facing a plausible genocide; and
WHEREAS, between October 7 and December 2, 2023, armed violence has claimed the lives of more than thirteen thousand Palestinians and some one thousand two hundred Israelis, and wounded tens of thousands more, the vast majority of which were civilians; and
WHEREAS, hundreds of thousands of lives are at imminent risk if a permanent ceasefire is not reached and humanitarian aid is not delivered without delay; and
WHEREAS, roughly half of the Palestinians killed or wounded during the violence in Gaza are children despite international humanitarian law requiring that all parties to an armed conflict protect children and prevent the commission of grave violations against them, including killing and maiming, attacks on schools and hospitals, recruitment and use of children, abduction of children, and denial of humanitarian access; and
WHEREAS, these children and their families face further imminent threats, including famine due to Israeli government restrictions on food, water, fuel, medicine, and other humanitarian assistance that reach them; and
WHEREAS, the dismantling of Hamas, a United States Government declared terrorist organization, cannot and should not be achieved at the expense of innocent lives; and
WHEREAS, the United States federal government holds immense diplomatic and economic power to save both Palestinian and Israeli lives; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, the House of Representatives concurring, that the President of the United States and members of Hawaii's congressional delegation are urged to publicly call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and continue negotiations for lasting peace; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that members of Hawaii's congressional delegation are urged to insist that the Biden Administration call for an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza, to facilitate the de-escalation of hostilities to end the current violence, promptly send and facilitate the entry of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, including fuel, food, water, and medical supplies, and begin negotiations for lasting peace; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, Majority and Minority Leader of the United States Senate and House of Representatives, members of Hawaii's congressional delegation, Chairs of the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee, and Governor.
Israel; Gaza; Permanent Ceasefire