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The following text is the finalized language for the Santa Ana Resolution in Solidarity with <br />the Palestinian People in Support of a Ceasefire. Please reach out to us if you have any <br />questions or suggested amendments to the language being presented: <br />WHEREAS, the City of Santa Ana stands in solidarity with the Palestinian people and the <br />international community in calling for a ceasefire to bring an end to the violence in Israel and <br />occupied Palestine. <br />WHEREAS, on October 7th, 2023, Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on the state of <br />Israel that resulted in the killing of an estimated 1,200 Israeli citizens; a devastating attack that <br />shook the international community; <br />WHEREAS, in response, the state of Israel launched a relentless and ongoing campaign of air <br />strikes on the people of Gaza, killing tens of thousands of civilians in the occupied territory, with <br />the death toll continuing to rise with each passing day; <br />WHEREAS, as of November 14th, 5 weeks into this most recent escalation between Israel and <br />occupied Palestine, more than 14,854 Palestinians have been killed as a result of air strikes, <br />including 6,150 children, and over 1,000 people buried beneath the rubble, according to recent <br />reports; <br />WHEREAS, in addition to the killing of innocent civilians, Israel’s bombardment has destroyed <br />entire neighborhoods throughout Gaza, displacing an estimated 1.6 million Palestinians, <br />according to UN reports; <br />WHEREAS, Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on Earth, with an overwhelming <br />majority of Gazans being young people, 65% under the age of 24, 47% under the age of 18, and <br />the median age for men and women being 18 years old, compared to a median age of 38 years <br />old here in the US; <br />WHEREAS, prior to the recent escalation, the Gaza Strip was described by human rights <br />organization such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Israeli human rights <br />organization B’Tselem as “the world’s largest open-air prison”; <br />WHEREAS, Gaza is known as “the world’s largest open-air prison” due to ongoing, unbearable <br />living conditions imposed by the state of Israel’s 16 year illegal blockade, which includes a full <br />air, land and sea blockade, enclosure of its borders by concrete walls and barbed wire fences, and <br />the strict prohibition of Palestinians from leaving and entering the territory freely; <br />WHEREAS, this blockade has resulted in a multitude of humanitarian struggles for Palestinians;