Two congressmen in the United States are among the first to publicly call for end to an Israeli-imposed siege on Gaza.
Congressmen Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Jim McDermott (D-WA) sent a letter, signed by over 50 members of the US Congress to President Barack Obama urging him to ease the humanitarian suffering of the people of Gaza by lifting Israel's siege on the coastal territory.
In the letter, the congressmen urged the president "to press for immediate relief of the suffering of the citizens of Gaza as an urgent component of your broader Middle East peace efforts".
The letter states that the crisis triggered by the siege on Gaza "has devastated livelihoods, entrenched a poverty rate of over 70%, increased dependance on erratic international aid".
![[QODLink]](http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/Images/2012/2/14/2012214152428124734_16.jpg "Bandwidth breakdown: Mobile rates could rise")
