April 4, 2024 (EIRNS)—The White House apparently thought it was business as usual, in the midst of famine and starvation among Palestinians in Gaza, to host a celebration dinner with U.S. Muslim community leaders. Planned for April 2, the invitations for an iftar dinner, marking the break-fast of that day’s Ramadan fasting, triggered a broad reaction.
According to CNN, one person familiar with the planning process said: “There was a significant amount of pushback from attendees that it would be inappropriate to raise the humanitarian crisis in Gaza over dinner. There’s a famine in Gaza, 23 children have died from starvation in Northern Gaza. I don’t think anybody would be comfortable sharing those stories and images over dinner.” Another said that there was little interest from participants to eat and celebrate, and it became clear it would be more fitting to hold a policy discussion. CNN cited a third as saying: “Basically the sentiment we heard over and over again was that anybody going to the iftar while Palestinians are being killed and starved should be ashamed of themselves.”
