Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken's testimony in front of a Senate committee on the president's supplemental funding request totaling more than $100 billion was repeatedly interrupted by anti-war protesters.
President Joe Biden sent Congress a supplemental funding request on Oct. 20 that includes more than $60 billion for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel, and the two secretaries came in front of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday to convince Congress to support the request.
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Almost immediately, the hearing was derailed by protesters who disrupted Blinken's opening remarks multiple times, chanting about the need for the United States to push for a ceasefire between Hamas, the terrorist group and de facto government of the Gaza Strip, and Israel, which has declared war on it following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks.
Once the first protester was removed from the hearing by Capitol Police, Blinken started his opening remarks again, only for another protester to interrupt him. The cycle repeated a couple of times while, in a silent protest, a group of people in the audience raised their hands that were covered in what was supposed to look like blood.
The protests represent a microcosm of the debate in the U.S. about the country's role in Israel's war with Hamas, which is largely divided along generational lines. A recent poll from NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist found that just shy of half of Gen Zers and millennials believe the U.S. should voice support for Israel compared to 63% of Gen Xers and 83% of baby boomers.
Calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have increased since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, as thousands of Israeli airstrikes have decimated Gaza's infrastructure and necessary life support. Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in the strikes, while Gaza hospitals are overwhelmed and underresourced due to the strain on them and the lack of humanitarian aid that's been able to enter Gaza.
The head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, said Monday that agreeing to a ceasefire is a "matter of life and death for millions."
"The present and future of Palestinians and Israelis depend on it," he added. "The level of destruction is unprecedented; the human tragedy unfolding under our watch is unbearable."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Biden administration officials have said as recently as this week that they would not support a ceasefire because it would allow Hamas to refit, regroup, and plan for additional attacks.
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"I want to make clear Israel's position regarding the ceasefire. Just as the United States would not agree to a ceasefire after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, or after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Israel will not agree to a cessation of hostilities with Hamas after the horrific attacks of October 7," Netanyahu said on Monday. "Calls for a ceasefire or calls for Israel to surrender to Hamas, to surrender to terrorists, surrender to barbarism, that will not happen."
U.S. National Security Council coordinator John Kirby said on Monday that the administration does support humanitarian pauses to allow for aid to get into Gaza or for civilians to leave the country, but not a ceasefire.