Congressional Staff Stage Walkout Ahead of Netanyahu Speech

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday resulted in dozens of congressional staffers walking out of their offices in protest.

The group of primarily Democrat staffers, known as Congressional Staff for Ceasefire, wants an end to Israel's military operation against Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip and said Netanyahu's appearance "disgraces the U.S. Capitol and dishonors the American values Congress has sworn to uphold," The Hill reported.

Democrat lawmakers such as former Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois and Patty Murray of Washington, reportedly said they would skip Netanyahu's speech in protest over the way Israel has conducted its military operation.

"For months, people in districts across the country have been demanding that their representatives work to bring this war to an end," Congressional Staff for Ceasefire said in a statement, according to The Hill. "Their demands are our demands: Stop funding this war against civilians. Send meals, not missiles. Secure the release of Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians. And use the leverage the American people have paid for to establish a lasting ceasefire that will bring an end to this brutal war."

Netanyahu has long contended that Israel's military operation will not end until Hamas is destroyed, and all of the hostages held in Gaza are returned. Hamas massacred at least 1,200 Israeli civilians and took about 250 others hostage during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack. About 100 hostages, including Americans, are reportedly still being held in Gaza.

It is not known how many Palestinian civilians have died since Israel's military operation began. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry puts the death toll at more than 39,000, but it doesn't distinguish between military and civilian deaths.

The staffers, who held red carnations to represent the civilian lives lost over the course of the war, left their offices at 1:25 pm to convene in front of the National Museum of the American Indian.

"This war on Gaza is not a case of self-defense, but a criminal campaign of vengeance against women and children [Netanyahu] has forced from their homes and driven to starvation," a spokesperson for the group told The Hill.

Various groups of staffers from the House and Senate met for speeches on the National Mall, facing the south of the Capitol building. Some carried a banner that read, "Staff say kick the war criminal out of our Capitol."

Approximately 230 staff signed a letter last week condemning Netanyahu's visit, saying it was an "issue of mortality," not politics.