A former US official who has just resigned from President Joe Biden’s cabinet said she left because of the US’s “blind, destructive support for Israel”.
Maryam Hassanein, former Special Assistant Office of the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management, US Department of the Interior, who resigned on Tuesday, said in an interview on Wednesday that she had expected Israel’s slaughter in besieged Gaza to end quickly and that the administration would be moved to support Palestinian liberation, but “unfortunately we haven’t seen that”.
Hassanein, the first Muslim appointee to resign in protest at US culpability in the Gaza slaughter, was one of 12 former US officials who issued a joint statement condemning Biden’s support for Israel.
“It was a way of using our collective voice to show, from different experiences and different backgrounds, that there is a better way. There doesn’t have to be unwavering support for Israel while they’re essentially committing genocide in Gaza.” Hassanein said.
Hassanein also stated that she hoped her resignation would encourage other civil servants to speak out and realize that this issue is not limited to a certain group of individuals, adding that although she was conflicted before her resignation, she was still shocked by what was going on.
She also stated that it is difficult for Democrats who support Palestine to vote for Donald Trump in the upcoming US election, but it is also difficult to support a “candidate who has done a lot of damage”, alluding to Biden and encouraged him to listen to the people who are standing up for Palestine.
“I think I would really urge President Biden to listen to our voices, not just my voice … but the many people and students and everyone across the country who are rallying behind Palestine and really pushing and pushing for a better approach to this,” she said.
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