President Joe Biden’s policy on Gaza is “a failure and a threat to U.S. national security” that “dehumanizes both Palestinians and Jews” and should be immediately overhauled, 12 former U.S. government officials who quit their posts over Biden’s controversial approach argued in their first joint public statement, which they exclusively shared with HuffPost.
The statement outlines steps that the former officials — four from the State Department, three from the military, one from the U.S. Agency for International Development and four from Biden’s political staff — recommend for a change in course. It suggests they will keep challenging the administration on public platforms, increasing pressure on Biden’s team to demonstrate progress in winding down the U.S.-backed Israeli offensive and addressing the humanitarian crisis it has created.
And it underscores how dissatisfaction with the administration’s Gaza policy, already widespread within the government, may continue to grow. The statement urges officials who remain in government to challenge their leaders “to not be complicit,” and its signatories include a previously unknown resignee: Anna Del Castillo, the first known White House official to leave the administration over Gaza. Del Castillo was a deputy director at the Office of Administration before her departure in April.