The atrocities of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel have been well-documented, widely reported and verified by the United Nations. Since Oct. 7, however, Israeli offensives have killed around 1.5% of Gaza’s total population and displaced almost 90% of residents. With Israel facing accusations of genocide in the wake of these events, nations around the world have begun canceling trade deals, withdrawing ambassadors, and sanctioning the Jewish state.

Straight Arrow News contributor Jordan Reid argues that the United States should cease its arms shipments to Israel. She expresses solidarity and empathy with the people of Israel but asserts that the U.S. must nonetheless cease its military support of Netanyahu’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank.

You know, when this conflict began, I came out in full force as a supporter of Israel. I still support the Israeli people. I’m Jewish, and I can understand (to whatever extent a person who hasn’t lived through it can) that their retaliation isn’t about the October 7 attack in a vacuum. It’s about centuries of degradation, enslavement, displacement…centuries of fear.

But I read the stories coming out of Gaza, follow the journalists documenting the atrocities taking place there. In five months, more than 30,000 Palestinians killed, a vast number of them children. And while I can support the Israeli citizens, and do, I can’t support their leadership.

This week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described his plan for peace, basically the total demilitarization of Gaza, with Israel controlling all entry and exit points to the strip. The problem is, as I see it, destroying Gaza, militarizing the peace solution, it just creates additional incentives for radicalization. They’re trying to rid Gaza of Hamas, but in the process, aren’t they creating more potential followers?

If I was living in a war zone and watching my civilian friends and family dying every day at the hands of Israeli troops, I can imagine all of a sudden finding Hamas’ position, as horrifying and inhumane as it is, far more appealing than the alternative.