Boston City Council approves resolution for Gaza ceasefire - and release of Hamas hostages

The City Council voted 11-2 today for a resolution, sponsored by Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson (Roxbury) calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of humanitarian aid for the region, the release of Israelis held hostage by Hamas and the reconstruction of Gaza.

Councilors Ed Flynn (South Boston, South End, Chinatown, Downtown) and Erin Murphy (at large) cast the no votes.

The resolution states:

That the City of Boston calls for immediate and permanent ceasefire in Israel and Palestine, an end to the bombing of Gaza, the freeing of all hostages from Hamas and the freeing of all administrative detainees held by Israel, lifting all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance at scale to meet the full needs of the population of Gaza, in line with international law, the resumption of U.S. funding of UNRWA, the rebuilding of the schools, homes, mosques, churches, and other structures destroyed in this conflict, enforcement of US and international laws requiring recipients of US military assistance comply with human rights standards and international humanitarian law, and the beginning of a process of repair and reconciliation for all impacted by the violence in the region including the advancement safety and dignity for all Israelis and Palestinians.

Councilor Ben Weber (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury), the council's only Jewish member, said he supported the resolution by Fernandes Anderson, the council's only Muslim member, and said he hoped it would help lead to "an awakening and a realization that the only path forward is one of coexistence."

Weber said he has heard from both Palestinian constituents near tears, who "can't believe US dollars are going towards the suffering of their relatives," but also from Jewish constituents who say they not only don't feel the horror of the Hamas terror attacks on Oct. 7 are being properly recognized but that some "don't feel welcome in a neighborhood they have lived in for over a decade."

Councilor Liz Breadon (Allston/Brighton), who grew up in Northern Ireland at the start of the Troubles, pointed to the work to end that in saying that a ceasefire is vital, but addd that "it is not going to be the end, it is the beginning, it is the beginning of the beginning."

Council President Ruthzee Louijeune (at large), who is Haitian-American, acknowledged that the work of the city council is to work on "potholes and schools" and city budgeting, but that as somebody who keeps watching atrocities in Haiti, she can't turn away and say nothing about the horrors of both Oct. 7 and, more recently, videos of young kids in Gaza who have lost their parents, their siblings, everything, in unending Israeli attacks.

Councilors Sharon Durkan (Back Bay, Fenway, Mission Hill, Beacon Hill) and Gabriela Coletta (North End, East Boston, Charlestown) both said they fully supported the goals of the resolution, but emphasized they denounce the anti-Semitism they have seen since Oct. 7. Coletta specifically denounced "calls for the annihilation of Israel or attacks on Jewish people."

Flynn said the City Council has more important, critical local issues to deal with, including public safety, neighborhood services and "getting our economy back."

Murphy agreed that "all life is precious and war is horrible," but that she could not vote for a resolution like this the day after Passover ended, because she head from Jewish constituents that they did not even hear the resolution would be up for consideration until this morning.