US senators: Israel is ethnically cleansing in Gaza, and Washington is complicit

“The Netanyahu government has not kept its goals secret in Gaza,” the senators wrote. “Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government have made the removal of Palestinians from Gaza a strategic aim of the war.”

They cited repeated statements from Israeli ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s vow that “Gaza will be totally destroyed” and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s call to “stop humanitarian aid and encourage migration.” Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu went further, declaring: “All of Gaza will be Jewish.”
The senators said these are not fringe voices but central figures in Netanyahu’s coalition. “They are shaping Israel’s actions in Gaza, the West Bank, and beyond,” the report noted.
The findings accuse Israel of using a two-pronged strategy to expel Palestinians: the systematic destruction of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure and the use of food as a weapon of war.
The report documents: A 78-day total blockade on food and humanitarian aid, followed by deliberate restrictions at crossings. The destruction of 92 per cent of homes, 94 per cent of hospitals, and 92 per cent of schools in Gaza. The killing of more than 1,300 Palestinians—many shot by Israeli forces—at so-called “food distribution” sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. One doctor told the senators: “When GHF announces the time food distribution sites open, our staff start preparing body bags.”
The report concludes: “Whatever Israel’s original war aims may have been, they now include the removal of Palestinians from Gaza. That is ethnic cleansing. Any talk of ‘voluntary departures’ is a cruel hoax. Departure is not ‘voluntary’ when the conditions needed to support life are extinguished.”
Van Hollen and Merkley stressed that the US bears direct responsibility for enabling these crimes. They said Washington has not only armed Israel but also failed to protect humanitarian convoys, shielded Israel diplomatically, and even adopted Israeli red-lines against UNRWA.
“The world has a moral and legal obligation to stop the ongoing ethnic cleansing,” the senators wrote. “Strong words alone will not be sufficient. The world must impose penalties and costs on those who are implementing this plan.”
The report comes as international pressure mounts over Israel’s genocide, which has killed more than 64,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, displaced 1.9 million people, and left half a million facing famine.