Amid calls for communities to back a ceasefire in Gaza, the Hartford City Council rejected a resolution to do that on Monday.
The resolution pointed out that more than 1,000 Israelis were killed on Oct. 7 and since the Israeli military campaign began, at least 29,000 Palestinians have been killed, including many children and women.
“We do not want more war. We want to build safe communities here,” Eamon Ormseth, of Hartford, said.
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Pro-Palestinian supporters say they want tax dollars invested here instead of being used for the war.
Jewish community members opposed the ceasefire measure.
“Israel was attacked on October 7. The worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. What’s happening across Israel-Gaza is a tragedy. It’s a tragedy caused by Hamas,” said David Waren, the president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford.
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Waren argues there could be peace in the Middle East if Hamas releases the hostages and lays down its arms.
“This kind of resolution doesn’t belong in City Halls. Municipal officials have no power over foreign policy,” Waren said.
But Pro-Palestinian supporters say members of the state’s congressional delegation have so far failed to take meaningful action to stop the fighting.
And at least one councilor thinks the city could have some small influence like it possibly had in the past.
“In the 80s we were one of the first cities to condemn apartheid, seek to divest from apartheid and that became a larger trend that we hope had some effect on how that played out historically,” Josh Michtom, WF – Hartford City Councilman, said.
Many of the councilors abstained from the vote when the resolution failed.
The council president called this a complex issue outside their responsibility and the council needs to focus on the needs of city residents they can directly impact.
