While advocates for Palestinians lobby Cleveland City Council to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland is urging the legislative body to hold off on such a move.
Council members received dueling letters on a potential ceasefire resolution last week as they prepared for their first meeting of the new year Monday night.
Protests against Israel’s airstrikes and ground invasion in the Gaza Strip – launched after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel – became a recurring feature of council meetings at the end of last year.
On the first day of the new year, a group of businesses, advocacy groups and others sent council proposed draft legislation endorsing a ceasefire. A few days later, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland entreated council to oppose a ceasefire resolution “until the Israelis and Palestinians have agreed on a fair and equitable solution.”
So far, no council member has sponsored the draft ceasefire resolution, meaning it is not scheduled for any hearings or votes. But protests at City Hall are expected to resume Monday night.
The pro-ceasefire letter was signed by such organizations as the Beit Hanina Cultural Center – a Palestinian cultural organization on the West Side – the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus and Jewish Voice for Peace Cleveland.
“The ongoing military occupation and the enduring siege of Gaza stand as defining factors that profoundly shape the daily lives of Palestinians across the world, including in Cleveland,” the pro-ceasefire letter reads.
The draft resolution describes Cleveland as a “welcoming community” for both Jews and Muslims and “decries all horrific acts of violence committed against civilians of any kind.” In addition to urging a ceasefire, it calls for “the release of all civilians being illegally held or imprisoned on both sides of the conflict.”
The resolution draft also endorses “a political resolution that brings an end to the occupation and illegal settlement activity by Israel,” while expressing support for “the legitimate desire for Jewish and Palestinian self-determination.”
Meanwhile, Jewish Federation of Cleveland leaders Daniel N. Zelman and Erika B. Rudin-Luria sent a letter to City Council on Jan. 5. They wrote that Israel has long been under “constant threat from Hamas,” which they said was “driven by a hatred of Jews and the goal to annihilate Jews and the state of Israel.”
Zelman and Rudin-Luria wrote that they “mourn the loss of all innocent lives.” They said that the federation supported a ceasefire only if it removed Hamas from power and ensured the return of the remaining hostages abducted from Israel on Oct. 7. A ceasefire without those conditions “only serves Hamas,” they wrote.
“A ceasefire will enable Hamas to get stronger and repeat the atrocities of October 7, as it has pledged to do,” the letter reads. “Providing Hamas this win will not bring about peace but will instead guarantee more suffering in Israel and Gaza.”
The language of the draft ceasefire resolution is largely similar to a ceasefire measure passed by Akron City Council in November. Akron’s council amended that legislation to include mentions of a two-state solution and Israel’s right to exist.
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