A ceasefire agreement reached in late 2025 raised hopes that relief would finally reach Palestinians in Gaza. Israeli hostages were released. Aid was supposed to flow. But those commitments have been disregarded.

Israel has repeatedly closed Gaza’s border crossings, sharply restricting the entry of food, medicine, and fuel.

This crisis is unfolding in the aftermath of devastating and widespread destruction across Gaza. Entire neighborhoods have been leveled. Civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, water systems, and homes, has been shattered. Even before the war, Gaza had been under a long-standing blockade that severely limited access to basic goods and freedom of movement. Now, after months of large-scale violence that many human rights experts have warned may amount to genocide, the population is being left without the food, medical care, and fuel needed to survive.

The scale of need is overwhelming. Before Israel’s war on Gaza, hundreds of trucks carrying food, medical supplies, and other essentials entered Gaza each day. At the start of the US-Israel war on Iran, Israel sealed Gaza again.  Now, only a fraction of that aid is getting through. 

Staple foods, infant formula, and nutritional supplements are in critically short supply. Hospitals lack basic medicines, surgical supplies, and fuel to keep generators running. Clean water systems are failing without the fuel and parts needed to operate them.

Families are going hungry. Hospitals are struggling to function. Children are facing severe malnutrition.

Without immediate and sustained access, more lives will be lost as lifesaving aid remains unable to reach families in need.

The United States is deeply implicated in this crisis and has a responsibility to act.

Two bills before Congress would take concrete steps to address this crisis:

• The Ceasefire Compliance Act (H. R. 7645) would press for adherence to the ceasefire and restrict U.S. weapons transfers in cases of non-compliance.
• The Food for Palestinian Children and Families Act (H. R. 7565) would help ensure that children in Gaza receive consistent access to daily meals through coordinated humanitarian efforts.

Now is the time for action.

As people of faith, we are called to respond when human life is at risk. The Palestinian people in Gaza cannot wait. Border crossings must be reopened, and humanitarian aid must be allowed to flow freely, fully, and without delay.  Call on your Congressional representative now to support these two bills.