Ranking Member DeLauro Floor Remarks on Israel Security and Global Humanitarian Aid Funding Bill

WASHINGTON — House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) delivered the following remarks on the House Floor in support of the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, one of three national security funding bills being considered by the House. A summary of this bill can be found here.

I rise in strong support of the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act which will provide Israel with desperately needed aid to respond to the horrific October 7th attacks and protect itself from Iran and its proxies.

What happened in Israel on October 7th was horrifying. On a recent trip to Israel, I saw firsthand the remnants of the violence that innocent people were subjected to, including the site of the Supernova Sukkot Gathering. The gathering at which there was a music festival that Hamas attacked, Kibbutz Be’eri and the homes where so many were massacred, and Hostage Square where I met with families of those taken hostage by Hamas.

The United States has not forgotten October 7th. Today we are providing the aid Israel has needed since the day Hamas terrorists killed innocent Israeli civilians in the worst attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust.

Just last weekend, Israel was openly and directly attacked by Iran. I applaud the role of the United States in providing Israel with support in its defense against that attack.

While we must ensure Israel can stand strong in the face of adversaries like Iran that seek its annihilation, we must also ensure that every step possible is taken to protect innocent life in Gaza, and elsewhere.

On my trip, we also went to Khirbet Zanutah, a Palestinian village in the West Bank where settlers destroyed homes and a school. On the trip, we were also briefed from Gaza by humanitarian organizations, including UNRWA, which have lost hundreds of staff to the violence.

To that end, I have called for an immediate ceasefire of at least six weeks to facilitate the safe delivery of aid to civilians in Gaza. We must protect aid workers, we must open additional crossings to bring in at least 500 trucks a day, and ensure that food is never used as a weapon of war.

Innocent families are in danger, children are starving, and civilian casualties are mounting, not just in Gaza, but in conflict zones all around the world. The more than $9 billion in humanitarian support in this bill would make sure we are not leaving Gazans, the Ukrainians, the Sudanese, the Haitians, or the Rohingya behind.

We must pass this bill and ensure Israel has the resources it needs to defend itself and that much-needed humanitarian aid can flow to millions of vulnerable people around the world.

I urge your support, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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