The Oakland City Council will hold a special session Monday to vote on a resolution supporting a permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The legislation, offered by District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife, calls on Congress to demand “an immediate ceasefire; release of all hostages, (and) the unrestricted entry of humanitarian assistance into Gaza.”
The resolution avoids specifics, such as the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas that killed 1,200 Israelis, or Israel’s retaliatory siege, bombardment and invasion of Gaza.
The Oakland document notes that “over 1,000 people in Israel and more than 11,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in a matter of weeks” without assigning responsibility.
It “recognizes that the current crisis takes place within a long history” and affirms that “the root causes of the crisis need to be addressed” without saying what those are, or what should be done.
‘A failure of humanity’
The resolution says children made up more than five thousand Palestinian deaths.
“Regardless of where you stand on the issue, one cannot deny that the loss of life of innocent children is a failure of humanity that must end today,” Fife wrote in a Nov. 10 letter to fellow council members and two other government bodies she serves on, the Association of Bay Area Governments and the Alameda County Transportation Commission.
“The Bay Area has been turning out for weeks, demanding a ceasefire and an end to genocide in Gaza,” said Lara Kiswani of Oakland, executive director of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center.
“We are proud that our Oakland City Council will be reflecting the voices of the diverse communities it represents and will stand firmly on the side of peace and justice,” Kiswani said in a statement Friday.
The special City Council session will be held at 4 p.m. in Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza.