Contact: Timothy Svoboda, (202) 225-2476
(Washington, D.C.) – Congressman Glenn Grothman (R-Glenbeulah) today released the following statement on Hamas’ missile attacks on Israel and the current state of Gaza.
“Earlier this month, Palestinian militant groups, like Hamas, fired almost 700 missiles into Israel.” Said Grothman. “Israel was forced to respond to this attack by striking Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad facilities in Gaza.
The root of this problem is Hamas’ unwillingness to govern Gaza responsibly. Though Hamas has control of the government in Gaza, it is still Egypt and Israel who maintain control of the borders. Gaza boasts a 42 percent unemployment rate and rations electricity to its residents. Despite Israel’s attempts to help the people living in Gaza, conditions are not improving. If Hamas would allow the people of Gaza to find jobs, live comfortably and work toward bettering their own community, I believe that much of the animosity between Hamas and Israel would subside.
We should be encouraging fair government and free markets in Gaza, as opposed to the current system that has an internationally recognized terrorist organization ruling with an iron fist.
My heart goes out to the people of Israel who were affected by the recent attacks and to all of those who live in constant fear that a missile will drop on them at any moment. I hope and pray for a resolution to this conflict and assert that if Hamas were able to occupy its time promoting jobs and a growing economy, then they would have less energy to devote to terrorist activities.”
