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Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023

Has any member of Congress visited Gaza in the last decade?

Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin Watch
no

The last reported visit by a member of Congress to the Gaza Strip was by then-Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minnesota, in 2013.

Gaza is controlled by the Palestinian group Hamas, which is designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization.

Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, attacked Israel, a U.S. ally, which in turn declared war.

Gaza borders the Mediterranean Sea between Israel and Egypt and is slightly more than twice the size of Washington, D.C. It has 2 million residents.

U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, a Madison-area Democrat, tweeted Oct. 9 that no member of Congress has been allowed in to Gaza for the last decade.

Pocan has called on Israel to allow members to enter Gaza to review U.S. aid for Palestinians living there in a “humanitarian crisis.”

NPR reported Oct. 10 that Israel has heavily bombed Gaza and ordered that no electricity, food or fuel be allowed in.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

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