Alhambra City Council Passes Ceasefire Resolution in Gaza Conflict

By Jaimie Ding, Editor

On March 25, the Alhambra City Council unanimously passed a resolution advocating for a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

Alhambra joins more than 100 cities around the country that have formally called for a ceasefire in Gaza, while the federal government continues to provide financial and political support to Israel. Other local cities that have passed a ceasefire resolution include Pasedena, Long Beach, Montebello, Cudahy, El Monte, Santa Ana, Bell, and Pomona.

The vote came after nearly two hours of public comment, during which more than 80 speakers advocated for the resolution at the meeting.

“We want to make clear as a city of Alhambra, as a city of the San Gabriel Valley and as a state of California that we want a ceasefire for Gaza,” said Brenda Chi, a Chinese Vietnamese artist and resident of Alhambra.

Several speakers asked for a wording change in the resolution from “peaceful resolution” to “permanent ceasefire,” and to add details about the Palestinian death toll of over 32,000.

“We ask you to have the moral clarity that currently our congressional elected officials don’t have yet,” said Tracy Zhao, another Alhambra Resident.

The topic was initially discussed during the January 22 city council meeting, where Mayor Ross Maza and council members discussed support for peace in the Middle East. Maza then sent letters to U.S. Congresswoman Judy Chu, State Senator Maria Elena Durazo and Assemblymember Mike Fong encouraging federal support for peace, ceasefire, and safe return of hostages in Gaza and Israel.

The resolution was initially titled, “Resolution Supporting A Peaceful Resolution to the Ongoing Conflict and Humanitarian Crisis Impacting Gaza and Israel.”

After public comment concluded, the council reconvened at around 11 p.m. Vice Mayor Sasha Renée Pérez mentioned she also received 900 emails on the issue, and proposed an amendment to change “peaceful resolution” to “permanent bilateral ceasefire.” Maza also proposed an amendment within the resolution text to include language regarding the "safe return and release" of all hostages.

On the same day, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan. It called for the immediate release of hostages and expansion of aid into Gaza.