Biden faces protest over his support for Israel during White House meeting
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has faced protests across the country over the Gaza conflict, but this week he faced protests at the White House itself.
The occasion was a private meeting Tuesday where Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and national security leaders could hear from Muslim Americans about their concerns about the war between Israel and Hamas.
Shortly after the conversation began, Thaer Ahmad, a Palestinian-American doctor from Chicago who has volunteered in Gaza, announced he was walking away.
Before leaving, Ahmad presented the president with a letter from an eight-year-old orphan girl in Rafah, a city Israel plans to attack next. He added a photo.
Ahmad said Biden’s response to his protest was muted.
“He said, ‘I understand,’” the doctor recalled.
Biden’s support for Israel’s military operations in Gaza, including the sale of American weapons, has angered Muslim Americans. The war began on October 7 when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis in a surprise attack.
Since then, approximately 33,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel. Biden has expressed concern about civilian casualties but has not halted military aid to Israel.
“There is a change in rhetoric,” Ahmad said. “But we have not seen any significant change in concrete actions.”
This week’s gathering was hosted by the White House in place of the more traditional celebratory dinner to mark the end of Ramadan. Several Muslim community leaders had declined invitations to break their fast with the president, saying it would have been inappropriate at a time of famine in Gaza.
“We understand how this community is feeling at a very painful time,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday.
She was circumspect when asked about Tuesday’s meeting, saying the conversation was private. Pressed about Biden’s response to Ahmad’s decision to run, she said the president “respects their freedom to peacefully protest.”
When Ahmad received the invitation to attend the meeting at the White House, he was under the impression that the meeting would be Biden’s first opportunity to talk to someone who had been on the ground in the six months since the war in Gaza began .
Jean-Pierre does not want to confirm whether that is the case.
As the meeting approached, Ahmad said he was troubled by a series of news stories about the sale of American weapons to Israel.
“I started to wonder: what is the purpose of the meeting? What difference am I going to make by being there?” he said.
Before heading to the White House, Ahmad decided he would walk out as soon as the meeting started.
“I’m not going to yell at anyone. I’m not going to throw anything. I’m just going to walk out quietly,” Ahmad said. “And that’s what I did.”
Ahmad is planning another trip to Gaza at the end of this month.