Democratic Congressmember Becca Balint of Vermont called Thursday for a lasting bilateral ceasefire in Gaza. Balint is the first Jewish member of Congress to call for a ceasefire. In a commentary published Thursday, she wrote, “Like me, there are thousands of American Jews that share a deep emotional connection to Israel because of what it meant for the survival of the Jewish people in the face of extermination. This same history also drives so many of us to fight for the protection of Palestinian lives.”

Meanwhile, more than 300 delegates to the 2016 and 2020 Democratic National Convention who backed Bernie Sanders for president called on the Vermont senator to introduce a resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza. Sanders has so far rejected a ceasefire and has called only for short “pauses” to the fighting.