US Jewish groups urge Biden to call for ceasefire

US-based Jewish organisations issued a joint statement on Tuesday demanding the Biden administration call for a ceasefire in Gaza. 

More than 500 representatives signed the letter including members of rights groups such as Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), IfNotNow and J Street, as well as rabbis and worshippers at synagogues across the US. 

The letter, which was first obtained by NBC News, included anonymous signatories who feared that by speaking publicly they could lose their jobs. 

“We are uniting together in this moment to call for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and a commitment towards a long-term political solution that ensures the freedom and collective safety of Israelis and Palestinians,” the letter said. 

“Our organizations may or may not join the call for a ceasefire themselves, but we feel moved to speak as individuals to demonstrate broad support within the Jewish community for a ceasefire.” 

The statement said that the safety of Israeli and Palestinian were "deeply intertwined” and urged further diplomatic efforts to ensure long-term peace and security. 

"We know that Israelis and Palestinians are here to stay- neither Jewish safety nor Palestinian liberation can be achieved if they are pitted against one another. We know that freedom for one people cannot be reached through the oppression and killing of another," the statement read. 

The open letter follows another statement issued by Muslim and Jewish staffers in Capitol Hill also calling an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza.

Advocacy groups such as JVP and IfNotNow have also been central organisers in pro-Palestinian protests and sit-ins in the US, demanding solidarity with Palestinians and a permanent ceasefire. 

“The White House and many in the US government are clear as they should be that 1,000 Israelis killed is too many,” IfNotNow’s political director Eva Borgwardt previously told The Guardian. 

“Our question for them is: How many Palestinian deaths are too many?” 

Israel has killed at least 17,177 Palestinians in its assault on Gaza since 7 October, targeting journalists in both Gaza and along the Lebanese border.