JERUSALEM, Israel – A group of 31 prominent Israeli public figures, including academics, artists, and intellectuals, has issued a stark call for “crippling sanctions” to be imposed by the international community on Israel. Their demand comes amid growing international alarm over the country’s handling of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with the signatories accusing Israel of “starving the people of Gaza to death and contemplating the forced removal of millions of Palestinians from the strip.”
Israeli Intellectuals Demand Sanctions Amid Gaza Crisis
High-profile figures urge international action over alleged starvation and forced displacement.
The signatories, who hail from fields such as journalism, poetry, science, and academia, include Academy Award recipient Yuval Abraham, former Israeli Attorney General Michael Ben-Yair, and Avraham Burg, a former speaker of Israel’s parliament and head of the Jewish Agency. Several recipients of the prestigious Israel Prize are also among those who signed the letter. They assert that “The international community must impose crippling sanctions on Israel until it ends this brutal campaign and implements a permanent ceasefire.”
This collective stance is notable for its blunt criticism of Israel’s actions and its break from the prevailing political climate, where advocating for sanctions can be met with punitive legislation.
Other notable signatories include painter Michal Na’aman, documentary filmmaker Ra’anan Alexandrowicz, and Samuel Maoz, director of the Golden Lion-winning film “Lebanon.” The poet Aharon Shabtai and choreographer Inbal Pinto also lent their names to the appeal.
The growing international outcry over the war in Gaza is increasingly resonating within Israel and the global Jewish diaspora. Images of emaciated Palestinian children and reports of Israeli forces firing on Palestinians seeking aid have fueled this concern.
The letter was released following the announcement that over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed during the 21-month conflict, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
On Monday, two prominent Israeli human rights organizations, B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights Israel, released reports for the first time assessing Israel’s actions as a “genocidal” policy against Palestinians in Gaza, a significant shift that challenges established narratives.
The previous day, the Reform movement, the largest Jewish denomination in the United States, declared the Israeli government “culpable” for the escalating famine in Gaza.
- 31 Israeli public figures called for sanctions.
- They accuse Israel of starving Gaza and contemplating forced removal.
- Signatories include artists, academics, and former officials.
- The letter breaks a taboo in Israel regarding sanctions.
“No one should be unaffected by the pervasive hunger experienced by thousands of Gazans. No one should spend the bulk of their time arguing technical definitions between starvation and pervasive hunger,” the Reform movement stated.
“The situation is dire, and it is deadly. Nor should we accept arguments that because Hamas is the primary reason many Gazans are either starving or on the verge of starving, that the Jewish state is not also culpable in this human disaster. The primary moral response must begin with anguished hearts in the face of such a large-scale human tragedy.”
“Blocking food, water, medicine, and power – especially for children – is indefensible,” the statement continued. “Let us not allow our grief to harden into indifference, nor our love for Israel to blind us to the cries of the vulnerable. Let us rise to the moral challenge of this moment.”
These statements follow remarks made earlier this month by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. He described a proposed “humanitarian city” by Israel’s defense minister in Rafah as a concentration camp, warning that forcing Palestinians into it would constitute ethnic cleansing.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, along with government officials and right-wing non-governmental organizations, has consistently denied the existence of a famine in Gaza caused by Israel’s actions. This denial persists despite substantial evidence, including assessments from the UN’s food security monitor, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification mechanism, and even former U.S. President Donald Trump’s acknowledgment of “real starvation” in the region.
The Israeli government has been contacted for comment.
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