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November 17, 2023

Vermont Rep. Becca Balint Becomes First Jewish Congressmember to Call for Ceasefire
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Democratic Congressmember Becca Balint of Vermont called Thursday for a
lasting bilateral ceasefire in Gaza. Balint is the first Jewish member
of Congress to call for a ceasefire. In a commentary published Thursday,
she wrote, "Like me, there are thousands of American Jews that share a
deep emotional connection to Israel because of what it meant for the
survival of the Jewish people in the face of extermination. This same
history also drives so many of us to fight for the protection of
Palestinian lives."

Meanwhile, more than 300 delegates to the 2016 and 2020 Democratic
National Convention who backed Bernie Sanders for president called on
the Vermont senator to introduce a resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Sanders has so far rejected a ceasefire and has called only for short
"pauses" to the fighting.


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