Chairman Risch in Floor Speech: Suffering in Gaza is "Fault of Hamas"

Click the image above to watch Chairman Risch's floor speech.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the remarks below in a floor speech on the humanitarian suffering in Gaza caused by Hamas.

"I reserve the right to object.

"First of all, we have no disagreement about the suffering that's going on in Gaza.

"The problem we have here is, as we heard from both of these speakers, not one word was said as to whose fault this is.

"This is the fault of a group of people. And that group of people is Hamas.

"I've heard them mention Israel several times.

"This is not Israel's fault.

"I heard them mention us, the United States. This is not our fault.

"I couldn't agree more with Senator Welch when he talks about the fact that we wanted an immediate ceasefire and for people to be fed there and things to get better there.

"It is so simple. It is so easy. It is totally in the hands of Hamas.

"If they release the hostages, they lay down their arms, and they surrender, not one more bullet will be fired.

"And there will be scads of trucks coming into Gaza.

"That's how this ends.

"But can we end it? No.

"If we send trucks in, Senator, you know, you've seen the intelligence on this. But if we send trucks of food in there—who eats? The Hamas soldiers eat.

"They starve the women, and they starve the children.

"Not only do they starve them, they use them as human shields.

"And they set up their military facilities in hospitals, in schools, in mosques, in all kinds of places that they then wring their hands and say, 'Oh, my gosh, we've been attacked.'

"Look, this is despicable. This is horrible. This is criminal.

"It's beyond human understanding how human beings could treat other human beings the same way, especially when you're related to them as they are in Palestine.

"So, I agree that this needs to stop.

"But the first thing that needs to be said is that this is the fault of Hamas, and it is not our fault. And it doesn't matter if we roll trucks in there tomorrow, that food would be taken, it would be stolen, it would be distributed by Hamas to the fighting soldiers, and the dying and the suffering of the women and children would continue.

"This thing is badly aimed, it does not, in any way, lay the fault where it belongs— and that is, at the feet of Hamas.

"So based on all that, I share your objective.

"This gets us nowhere, and worse than that, it doesn't point out where the problem is.

"Madam President, I object."

These remarks have been lightly edited for clarity.