CAIR Calls on Biden to ‘Stop Enabling’ Israeli Attack on Al Mawasi

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the leading U.S. Muslim civil rights group, issued a statement Saturday in response to an Israeli strike on a displacement camp that killed 71 Palestinians in the Al Mawasi area of ​​Gaza.

The latest strike, which left many dead, also injured 289 Palestinians in what Gaza health officials have since called a “brutal massacre by the occupation.”

CAIR commented on the attack as global outrage over the war’s civilian toll intensifies.

The human rights group also condemned the Biden administration’s continued support for Israel’s military conduct and demanded that the government take tougher action.

In a statement, Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), criticized the far-right Israeli government for committing massacres of Palestinians, relying on assurances that it will receive support and vindication from the Biden administration.

“President Biden’s continued support and silence on genocide gives a green light to more Israeli abuses and war crimes,” Awad said.

“Biden must stop enabling these daily massacres and end our nation’s complicity in genocide. Administration officials must start treating Palestinians as human beings worthy of life, dignity, and justice, not as animals destined only for slaughter.”

Awad also stressed that the flow of American weapons and taxpayer money to Israel continues unabated.

This comes as CAIR recently criticized the Biden administration’s announced decision to provide Israel with 500-pound bombs for use in Gaza, which it had previously been denied.

President Biden has stood firm on his decision to delay delivery of the massive 2,000-pound bombs, even as his administration moves forward on other munitions.

The civil rights group also denounced on Friday the Israeli strike on an aid distribution point in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, which led to the deaths of aid workers from the UK-based Al Khair Foundation charity.

On Thursday, President Joe Biden announced that U.S. mediators were making progress toward negotiating a ceasefire in Gaza, as he called for an end to the conflict in the Palestinian territory.

In a high-stakes news conference that lasted nearly an hour, Biden sought to address skepticism about his re-election campaign and acknowledged concerns about Israeli actions, despite his general support for the U.S. ally.

“In retrospect, I would have liked to convince the Israelis to do many things, but the main thing is that we have a chance now. It is time to end this war,” he said after a NATO summit in Washington.

More than a month ago, Biden proposed a plan in which Israel would temporarily halt its offensive in Gaza and Palestinian groups would release captives, paving the way for negotiations to permanently end the devastating nine-month war.

He also urged Israel to develop a “day after” plan to end the conflict and spoke of its diplomatic efforts to involve Arab states in ensuring security in the region.

Biden threw his support behind Israel after the October 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,195 people, according to Israeli figures.

The ongoing Israeli military offensive has left at least 38,443 dead in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from the Gaza Health Ministry.