Washington, D.C. | www.adc.org | October 3, 2024 – Today, in a series of high-level meetings in Washington, DC, Abed Ayoub, Executive Director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), Michigan State Representative Alabas Farhat, and Chris Habiby, Government Affairs Director of ADC, met with senior government officials at a West Wing meeting to discuss the urgent plight of 80,000 American citizens currently stranded in Lebanon. Discussions were also had with the Embassy of Lebanon, and with Congressional members. The group highlighted the critical need for immediate U.S. Government intervention to initiate evacuation operations, and stressed the problems created by a lack of clear communication from the US Government. The ADC proposed leveraging Turkey, Germany, and Greece’s air resources to facilitate evacuation efforts and avoid the disastrous consequences of further delaying these operations.
“American citizens in Lebanon are facing dire circumstances, and the need for an immediate evacuation plan cannot be overstated,” said Abed Ayoub. “The lives of American citizens are in danger, and our government must act swiftly and decisively, as it has done in the past.”
Three American citizens from Dearborn, Michigan, have already been killed by Israeli bombs, and many more remain at risk as the violence escalates. Today’s meetings highlighted the lessons learned from the 2006 Lebanon War, where a delayed evacuation response resulted in the loss of lives. The current situation mirrors that crisis, and the urgent need for dedicated, coordinated evacuation efforts, including by chartering flights and ferrying people to Cyprus, was strongly emphasized.
“Every moment that passes by without evacuation flights further endangers the lives of Americans. The United States has an obligation to protect its citizens and must do everything possible to bring them home,” said State Representative Farhat. “Families in my district are already grieving the loss of loved ones killed by Israeli bombs. This administration must act now.”
With only one month before the 2024 Presidential Election, Michigan remains one of the most critical battleground states. The Arab American vote holds significant power, and growing dissatisfaction with U.S. foreign policy—particularly regarding Israel’s ongoing wars of aggression in Palestine and Lebanon—is already being felt. Community leaders are calling for swift action to protect American citizens, prevent further escalation of a regional war nobody wants, and offer Lebanese citizens the same protections the U.S. has extended to other conflict zones like Ukraine and Afghanistan.
In addition to the evacuation request, today’s meetings also stressed the need to grant TPS to Lebanese citizens in the United States and establish a humanitarian parole program for those in Lebanon. Israeli’s ongoing violence, which has already killed at least 1,700 and displaced over a million people, endangers the lives of everyone in Lebanon. Designating TPS and establishing a humanitarian parole program, similar to those established for Afghanistan and Ukraine, would reflect the U.S. commitment to offering refuge to civilians caught in conflict.
“The Biden administration must take immediate steps to protect American citizens and assist the innocent civilians fleeing violence in Lebanon,” said Ayoub. “Failure to act now risks both lives and the integrity of the U.S. response to this crisis.”
About the ADC
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is the largest Arab American grassroots organization in the U.S., founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk. ADC’s mission is to defend and promote the human rights, civil rights, and liberties of at least 3.7 million Arab Americans residing in the United States. Through its work, the ADC fights discrimination in the U.S., enhances public understanding of Arab history and culture, and partners with marginalized communities globally to advance social justice.
ADC Contact: Valentina Pereda, [email protected]