By Rachel Ravina
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean began a telephone town hall earlier this week, reacting to developments thousands of miles away from her office in Washington, D.C.
Marking the passing of the two-year anniversary of the “terrible attack on Israel by Hamas” on Oct. 7, 2023, the Democratic congresswoman serving Pennsylvania’s Fourth Congressional District learned of possible progress as she read aloud a post from President Donald Trump’s Truth Social platform indicating “Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first phase of the peace plan.”
“We want to bring an end to the suffering, both in Israel and in Palestine. It has been a grievous two years of suffering, and I am pleased to hear that Hamas has come to the table. Much more importantly to me at this point is that these hostages get home,” Dean said.
Dean serves on a congressional foreign affairs committee and said she has heard from many constituents about the issue. As “regional talks in Egypt” have taken place, Dean said she’s pleased they’re “proving to be fruitful to matters back home.”
“I think we have finally global leadership, and the region has been working on this, and I’ve met with regional leaders about this,” Dean said. “Finally, we have a critical mass of regional leaders.”
“It is no longer just Mr. Netanyahu and Hamas,” she continued. “Fortunately, we have the president of the United States and his secretary of state focused on this. They recognize a need to end the suffering.”
After the attacks
Dean noted past visits to Israel, one of which occurred around five weeks after the Oct. 7 attacks, where 1,200 people were killed and 251 hostages were taken by Hamas.
“I witnessed the suffering of the attack, visiting the places of the attack, the killing fields, the kibbutz,” Dean said, as she recalled meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
“And so we understood that with that grievous attack, Israel had a right and a responsibility to hold Hamas accountable, and just as important, to get the hostages home. We’re in a very different world now,” Dean said.
Two years of war
Forty-eight hostages, 20 of whom are believed to still be alive, remain in Gaza more than 2 years later. Around 67,000 people have been killed in Israel’s military campaign, according to BBC News, which cited disputed figures from the Hamas-run health ministry.
Along with destruction of much of the war-torn area, worldwide protests and public opposition have ignited as Israel denies allegations of genocide.
“We have so much of Gaza destroyed,” Dean said. “We have famine … families are going hungry, foreign correspondents are not allowed in. It is a very grievous time. It’s time for the suffering to end, the hostages to come home.”
Dean’s Oct. 8 telephone town hall covered a range of foreign and domestic matters amid the ongoing government shutdown. However, a Norristown resident identified as Barbara sought the congresswoman’s insight on a realistic end to the Israel-Hamas conflict.
“I’m very curious about your thoughts on what it’s going to take to hope to God this is an actual ceasefire that turns into the return of the hostages and pulls the Israeli troops back,” she said. “But my area of curiosity is what it’s going to take to turn a ceasefire into a lasting peace?”
Dean was candid in her response: “I care about it just like you do.” Pointing to a dog tag around her neck, something she wears “every day.”
“I put it on as a prayer to say, let’s do our part to ‘tikkun olam,’ repair the world,” Dean said, referring to the Hebrew phrase that’s considered a core component of Judaism.
Lasting peace
Dean underscored her hopes for the “pressure of the world to say ‘cease fire’.”
“I hope that this has become sort of a critical mass of pressure on both Hamas and Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition for ceasefire, hostages home, humanitarian aid in, and finally, rebuilding of Gaza with a government that is not Israel, that is not Hamas and that creates a chance for peace and dignity for two peoples,” Dean said.
Israel’s cabinet approved a ceasefire plan brokered by the U.S. government on Friday. Palestinians returned to Gaza’s northern strip along with reports that the remaining hostages were expected to be released in the coming days, according to the Associated Press. Deliveries of expanded humanitarian aid and supplies will begin on Sunday after the United Nations receives permission from Netanyahu.
As Trump’s ceasefire plan contains 20 points, the Associated Press reports it’s unclear “who will govern Gaza as Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm” as of Friday. But Dean had a simple message for those listening on her telephone town hall as the global events continue to unfold: “I pray for peace.”
