Peter Welch

Mr. President, Procedure · 7 wordsI rise in support of this resolution.Procedure Thanks · 24 wordsI want to thank my colleagues Senator Sanders and Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Senator Van Hollen, for your leadership on this particular resolution.Thanks Claims · 44 wordsThe situation in the Middle East, in Gaza and the West Bank, is deplorable. And before I start about what is occurring here in the West Bank, I just want to remind the American people that the dire situation in Gaza is getting worse. Mr. President, Claims · 65 words92 percent of the people in Gaza, their shelter is a tent or a plastic cover.¹ They still lack water. They still lack access to regular food, and the kids are not going to school. And this is a Palestinian community that was very proud of one of the highest literacy rates and education rates in the world, despite the very difficult circumstances they face. Positioning · 4 wordsThat is really unacceptable.Positioning Claims · 57 wordsBut today we are here on this resolution that is about protecting Americans, 17 Americans who have been the victims of violence in the West Bank.² And, today, this resolution is about the obligation that our State Department has--our government has--to protect American citizens abroad by demanding a report, by getting information, and by insisting on accountability. Reasoning · 61 wordsSo whatever one’s position may be with respect to the hostilities in the Middle East, what this resolution is requiring is that the State Department do the job with respect to American deaths in the West Bank--the same request that we would make if this were another government, not Israel, and American citizens were the victims of violence in other countries. Claims · 13 wordsIt is the basic responsibility of this U.S. Government to protect U.S. citizens. Procedure · 7 wordsThat is what this is profoundly about.Procedure Claims · 134 wordsThe failure for the State Department and our government to do the basic responsibility of citizen protection and accountability has to be wired up into the policy of this administration to look the other way when these things are happening.No reason given It has been the policy of the United States to support a two-state solution.³ It is the policy of the Netanyahu government to occupy and ultimately annex the West Bank. And the result of that, there is, in many cases, settler violence towards citizens in the West Bank, in some cases Americans who are there.No reason given It also is the reason why, in many cases where this violence is occurring is very much in front of the eyes of the Israeli military, they are looking the other way and doing nothing to protect the victims.No reason given Positioning · 25 wordsThis is not an argument that is made by folks like Senator Van Hollen and Senator Sanders and me, who are concerned about that violence.Positioning Claims · 92 wordsIt is something that was recognized by our own Ambassador Mike Huckabee. In July of 2025, Mr. Saifullah Kamel Musallet, a 20-year-old American from Florida--an American from Florida--who was visiting his family in the West Bank was beaten to death by violent Israeli settlers during a settler attack on the town of Sinjil.⁴ Eyewitness accounts report that settlers and Israeli forces impeded ambulance access for more than 2 hours.⁵ And to his credit, Ambassador Huckabee called the killing of Mr. Musallet a ``criminal and terrorist act,’’ and stated ``there must be accountability.’’⁶ Positioning · 2 wordsWe agree.Positioning Procedure · 9 wordsI want to mention a couple of other cases.Procedure Claims · 150 wordsShireen Abu Akleh, she was a journalist, a prominent reporter, a well-known reporter. She was shot. It was not a combat situation, but was shot by a sniper from nearly 200 meters away.⁷ She was standing calmly with other reporters wearing a press helmet and a press vest. She was shot in the head. Another reporter Dylan Collins, a constituent from Vermont, a very accomplished photojournalist. He was not in the West Bank, but he was reporting from the Israeli-Lebanese border.⁸ He was also in a group of journalists, prominently stationed on an open hillside. They had the usual identification of ``press’’ vest, blue helmets, in a vehicle clearly marked ``press,’’ where they were clearly visible. They were fired on by an Israeli tank and heavy machinegun fire.⁹ There has been no significant investigation on the part of the Israeli Government to get to the bottom of how that happened.¹⁰ Procedure · 1 wordsAlso, ProcedureClaims · 213 wordsas we know, the Israeli Government now is detaining without charges dozens of Americans, ¹¹as well as thousands of Palestinians--some of these include minors. One of those was a 17-year-old young man, American, Abdalkareem, who is pictured here. He has been held under ``administrative detention,’’ and that means that under Israeli law authorities can hold him indefinitely without charge or without trial--without any intention of bringing him to trial. We have been in touch with his father, who tells us that Abdalkareem was 17 when he was detained around 3 a.m. on June 29.<sup>12</sup> He was in the process of completing high school exams. He has since turned 18. This is a young man who had never been detained or arrested before. He is now being held in the Ofer prison, <sup>13</sup>which has a terrible reputation for attending to the well-being of those who are imprisoned there. His detention is also based on undisclosed ``secret’’ information that has not been shared with his lawyers or his family. Embassy officials, who were finally allowed on July 23 to visit, ¹⁴and Abdalkareem reported being beaten during interrogation, and prison authorities would not even let the U.S. Embassy give this young man vitamins, scabies medication, or his schoolbooks. And he has not been allowed family contact. Reasoning · 37 wordsThe real question here is not what Israel is doing, but what the United States Government is not doing on behalf of its own citizens, some of whom have been killed, others of whom have been detained. Claims · 57 wordsSo this resolution is asserting the will of Congress that our government do its job to protect American citizens. When they have been injured or they have been killed, to demand accountability and an investigation. And it is certainly within the power of this government to use its influence so that Israel does comply with our law.No reason given The ask · 26 wordsI urge all of our colleagues to stand up for the rights of all of our citizens to have the full protection of the U.S. Government. Procedure · 4 wordsI yield the floor.Procedure