Protestors with 'bloody' hands hold sit-in at House hearing, call for cease-fire in Gaza

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - A group of activists staged a pro-Palestine protest Wednesday at a hearing of the US House of Representatives, calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.

Members of the anti-war activist group Code Pink sat behind speakers who were testifying about the Iranian-backed Houthi group’s threat to Middle East stability, global shipping and US service members, raising their red-painted hands during the entire testimony.

“We're in the House hearing on the U.S.'s latest round of attacks on the people of Yemen. The U.S. has blood on their hands — HANDS OFF YEMEN!” the group wrote on X.

The protest came after the House passed a $95.3 billion package, including $14 billion for Israel as it continues its offensive in Gaza amid concerns over the mass targeting of civilians and credible reports of violations of international law.

Code Pink said in a statement that the protest aims to “amplify the voices of the majority of Americans who oppose sending more of their tax dollars to Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza.”

Since a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people, the Israeli offensive into Gaza has killed more than 28,000 people and caused mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.