Israeli Hostage Crisis

Floor Speech

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Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Wasserman Schultz for this Special Order.

I rise tonight, Mr. Speaker, because, on October 7, Hamas terrorists attacked Israel and abducted more than 230 people, including many Americans. Hamas brutally murdered, raped, burned alive, and decapitated more than 1,000 innocent babies, children, women, men, and the elderly. It was the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

Mr. Speaker, 40 American citizens were slaughtered by Hamas, and 9 have been living in horrifying fear at the hands of terrorists for more than 50 days. It blows my mind that this isn't talked about every single day in this country, that Americans were killed and Americans remain hostages.

Hamas killed Americans, and terrorists still hold American hostages inside Gaza. That should be the beginning and end of the argument of why we must crush and kill Hamas.

Thankfully, because of President Biden's resolve and strong leadership, groups of hostages have been rescued, including 4-year-old Avigail, an American citizen. Nevertheless, as of today, there are still 160 hostages.

One of the eight American hostages is Edan Alexander, a 19-year-old from Tenafly in my district in northern New Jersey. You can see him in this photo that was shared with me by his family, his mom.

I have spent time with his family. They are phenomenal people and just such wonderful, warm people. His sister is at Tenafly High School. After graduating from Tenafly High School in 2022, Edan began serving in the Israel Defense Forces.

Edan is the type of person who would regularly call his mother to check in, and his sister considers him to be her best friend. He is devoted to his friends and is always there for his family. He swam in high school. I have seen pictures of him at the prom. He is just like any other American kid we know.

Since day one, I have been in constant contact with the Alexander family and the State Department. Their unimaginable strength in the face of unfathomable pain gives us all great hope.

It is time to get all of these hostages home.

There are some people who equivocate about Hamas. There should be no equivocation. They are designated by the United States of America as a foreign terrorist organization, and anybody who has spent time looking at images that many of us saw in the videos of barbaric, heinous, and unthinkable acts that took place on October 7 knows what Hamas is capable of.

Look what they are doing to innocent Palestinian civilians every single day. Are they welcoming them underground and giving them safe haven? No. They take no responsibility. They use innocent people as human shields. That is what Hamas does.

Hamas' charter advocates jihad against the Jewish people and the elimination of the Jewish state. Israel is surrounded by terror groups that want to kill their people, including Arab Israelis.

Israel is and remains the only vibrant, progressive, and inclusive democracy in the region. They are our key ally because they are critical to our national security and stand up for values that we share, strong democratic values. They are key to our fight against terror in the region, against Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hamas.

In Israel, Arab parties serve in the Knesset; women serve at the highest levels of military; and the country remains an oasis for LGBTQ people in a region hostile toward the community.

It sickens me that some people are trying to romanticize Hamas. They should be reminded that in Gaza, under Hamas rule, same-sex relations are outlawed. Make no mistake, Mr. Speaker, your life would be at risk every day if you were openly gay in Gaza or the West Bank.

Additionally, Hamas' 1988 charter states that Muslim women are important because they ``manufacture men.'' Hamas even enforces what women wear in public. There is also no law in Gaza that criminalizes violence against women within the family, including sexual violence.

Hamas allows honor killings, the murder of women and girls accused of what they call ``immoral sexual conduct.''

Yet, it took U.N. women a month and a half to recognize that women and girls were raped in Israel, and, even then, they still refused to mention Hamas.

Do they not believe the fact that Hamas terrorists committed horrifying and unspeakable acts against innocent girls and women, including many that we have seen images of? As you see all of these hostages being released, you can't imagine what they have been through; and I think, of course, of the images we are seeing this evening, those who are still hostages.

Thankfully, President Biden has been phenomenal, as I said, with his unwavering support for the State of Israel and the Jewish people. The President understands that you have to actually hold terrorists who commit atrocities accountable or they will strike again and be stronger.

Hamas terrorists have made it clear that they will not back down and are committed to ``a second, third, and fourth'' October 7 against Israel.

Mr. Speaker, let me conclude by saying: We must stand by our key ally to get all hostages home, crush the terrorists, and provide humanitarian aid to innocent Palestinian civilians being used by Hamas as human shields.

Israel must eliminate every single terrorist responsible for the atrocities committed on October 7, and we must get these hostages home.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Debbie for her leadership. I thank all of my colleagues for being here this evening.

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for his words.

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