On
January 27, 2010, fifty-four members of Congress signed a
letter
addressed to Barack Obama, calling on the President to use diplomatic
pressure to end Israel's blockade of Gaza. The letter also praised
Obama for his “commitment
of $300 million in U.S. aid to rebuild the Gaza Strip” in the
aftermath of Operation Cast Lead; it acknowledged that the restrictions on
Gaza had been imposed “out of a legitimate and keenly felt fear of
continued terrorist action by Hamas and other militant groups”; and it lamented that “the people of Gaza
have suffered enormously” as a result of the “collective
punishment” of the blockade.
