Durham, North Carolina passed a CEASEFIRE resolution on February 19, 2024

RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A CEASEFIRE AND AN END TO VIOLENCE BETWEEN ISRAEL AND PALESTINE

WHEREAS, the City of Durham is home to people of diverse nationalities, ethnicities, and faiths for whom the current conflict in the Middle East has a real and personal impact; and

WHEREAS, all human life is precious, and all people, both in Durham and abroad, have a right to be respected and feel safe; and

WHEREAS, on October 7, 2023, an act of terror was perpetrated by Hamas against civilians in Israel, resulting in the death of almost 1,200 people as well as the continued detainment of more than 100 hostages, whose communities, including our own, still await their release; and

WHEREAS, since October 7, 2023, disproportionate retaliation by the Israeli Government in the form of bombing of Gaza and a limiting of most humanitarian aid has claimed the lives of at least 28,000 Palestinians, injured at least 67,000 Palestinians, displaced most of the Palestinian population of Gaza, and has put thousands more people at risk of death from starvation, unsanitary conditions, and lack of healthcare; and

WHEREAS, the United States Federal Government holds significant diplomatic and appropriations powers to save Israeli and Palestinian lives.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Durham:

  1. Urges the Biden administration to call for and facilitate de-escalation and a sustained, bilateral ceasefire;

  2. Urges the Biden administration to send and facilitate the immediate entry of humanitarian assistance into Gaza at the scale required;

  3. Calls for the release of all hostages held in Gaza;

  4. Calls for the release of all people unjustly held in the region;

  5. Calls for an end to U.S. military aid to the Netanyahu government;

  6. Urges the Biden administration and international community to work toward long-term solutions that afford safety and dignity to all people in Israel, Palestine, and the region, and which foster just and representative government for both Palestinians and Israelis.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the City of Durham supports all of its Palestinian, Israeli, Muslim, and Jewish residents and condemns antisemitic and Islamophobic rhetoric and attacks.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Durham City Council asks the City Clerk that copies of this Resolution be quickly forwarded to the President of the United States and our Congressional Delegate, Valerie Foushee.