After weeks of heavy bombing by the Israeli military, nearly 19,000 civilians have been killed in Gaza, many of them children. Thousands more have been injured and many thousands more buried in the rubble. There is no safe place from the Israeli bombing.

An immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza is urgently needed, as the United Nations General Assembly has urged. We support the recently published call of more than 100 Hawaii health-care workers for an immediate and permanent ceasefire. Such a ceasefire, urged by many church, labor and human rights organizations around the world, would halt the daily death toll, would lessen tensions, and could provide an opening for a negotiated peace settlement. It could also free more hostages and bring about the release of more than 6,000 Palestinians in Israeli military prisons, many held without charges.

The brutal seizure and occupation of Palestinian lands since 1948 and the expansion of Israeli settlements have eroded Palestinian rights and lands and helped bring about groups like Hamas that are determined to resist Israel’s expansion and end its existence.

Jewish people everywhere deserve a world where they can live safely, joyfully and without the constant threat of hatred and violence. The Oct. 7 attack and slayings of more than a thousand Israeli civilians by Hamas were despicable war crimes. At the same time, the Israeli government’s retaliatory response of massive bombardment of Gaza, supported and funded by the U.S., has been murderous and criminal and actually builds support for terrorist groups.

It is not in the interest of Americans to support the slaughter in Gaza by our government’s sending bombs, weapons and artillery shells to Israel. Over $3 billion of our tax dollars go each year to supplying Israel’s military. Those monies could be better used to provide housing, jobs, health care and schools, and address the challenges of climate change. It is clearly also in our interests to secure a safe and peaceful world free of ceaseless conflicts so all can prosper and fewer die from disasters and war.

It is disturbing to witness the current rise of both antisemitism and Islamophobia in the U.S. and globally. This was most grotesquely exemplified nationally by the recent murder of a 6-year old Palestinian youth, Wadea Al Fayoume, and the killing of Samantha Woll, the head of the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue. In Honolulu, authorities are now investigating a recent email threatening to place bombs in every Hawaii synagogue. These threats and crimes of hatred against Jews and Muslims have been fed by the hostilities and killings in the Middle East.

There is also the danger that Israel’s invasion and incessant bombing campaign in Gaza could lead to a much wider conflict in the Middle East and involve more countries.

It is time to de-escalate. An immediate and permanent ceasefire is crucial now — and our elected officials at local, state and national levels should advocate for a permanent ceasefire and work to make it happen.

Hawaii residents Ray Catania and Julianna Davis are community and labor advocates; this also was co-signed by activist John Witeck.