Another Biden administration employee quits over US support for "Israel's genocide"

Washington DC - Yet another Biden administration appointee has resigned in protest over the government's ongoing support for Israel's siege of Gaza.

Maryam Hassanein (top l.) has become the latest Biden administration appointee to resign over White House policy toward Israel and Gaza.
Maryam Hassanein (top l.) has become the latest Biden administration appointee to resign over White House policy toward Israel and Gaza.  © Collage: Screenshot/X/Maryam Hassanein & Kent Nishimura / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Maryam Hassanein, who served as special assistant and assistant secretary for Land and Minerals Management in the US Interior Department, announced on Tuesday that she is stepping down from her role.

"As a Muslim American, I cannot continue working for an administration that ignores the voices of its diverse staff by continuing to fund and enable Israel's genocide of Palestinians," the 24-year-old wrote in her resignation letter.

"The Department of the Interior, among other things, is an agency that works to right the wrongs the United States has committed against Indigenous peoples. But we should not wait decades to act in the best interest of Palestinians whose struggles mirror those of Indigenous peoples native to the US. We can and should act now to stop Israel's genocide in Gaza," she continued.

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Hassanein said she was inspired by students around the nation who have risked their own prospects in order to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

"My sacrifice pales in comparison to Palestinians, who have been forced to give up their comfort, their rights, their land, and their safety," she wrote.

Hassanein's letter also reflected growing frustration among Arab and Muslim Americans with the president and his administration: "When my family and I, alongside other Muslims and Arab Americans, turned up to vote for President Biden in 2020, it was because the Biden campaign promised justice. That promise and faith in the administration has been shattered."

"Through their policy choices and dehumanization of Arabs and Muslims, it has become clear to me that I do not have a place in this administration."

Biden administration sees string of resignations and protests

Demonstrators rally outside the White House to protest the Biden administration's continued support for Israel's attacks on Gaza.
Demonstrators rally outside the White House to protest the Biden administration's continued support for Israel's attacks on Gaza.  © ANDREW THOMAS / AFP

The Biden administration's continued support for Israel's assault on Gaza has led to a string of high-profile resignations and protests in recent months.

Josh Paul, a top official at the State Department, resigned over continued US arms transfers to Israel. He has since backed a federal lawsuit accusing President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin of complicity in genocide.

Former State Department officer Annelle Sheline and Arabic-language spokesperson Hala Rharrit left their posts over the US' role in Gaza's destruction, as did former Education Department official Tariq Habash, who is Palestinian American.

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Active Air Force member Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington in what he called "an extreme act of protest." He died as a result.

Army Major Harrison Mann, who is Jewish, stepped down from his post at the Defense Intelligence Agency in May in response to the US government's "nearly unqualified support" for Israel.

Days later, Lily Greenberg Call, a special assistant to the chief of staff in the Interior Department, became the first Jewish-American Biden appointee to resign over the Gaza assault.

Career State Department official Stacy Gilbert stepped down at the end of May over a government report claiming Israel had not impeded access to humanitarian aid in Gaza.

These resignations and acts of defiance came amid mass demonstrations of public support for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and Palestinian liberation.

Cover photo: Collage: Screenshot/X/Maryam Hassanein & Kent Nishimura / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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