WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) sent a letter to President Trump urging his administration to seek answers and conduct a U.S.-led investigation into the fatal shooting of Amer Rabee, a 14-year-old New Jerseyan. Two other American citizens were also injured in the incident, including 14-year-old Ayoub Ijbara and 15-year-old Abdulrahman Shihada. Ayoub Ijbara was born in New Jersey and is reported to be in critical condition.

“As New Jersey’s Senators, we are calling for a thorough and transparent accounting of the facts and circumstances around Amer Rabee’s death and the actions of Israeli security forces. We appreciate the difficult and dynamic nature of the situation, but also underscore our expectation that such an inquiry is possible and should be pursued when an American has died. As a result, we urge your administration to conduct a timely, independent and transparent investigation into Amer Rabee’s death as well as Ayoub Ijbara and Abdulrahman Shihada’s injuries,” the Senators wrote.

The lawmakers expressed that many of their constituents in New Jersey have connections to Turmus Ayya, a town in the West Bank with a large Palestinian American community, and have been personally impacted by this devastating event and the rise in violence in the West Bank that has occurred in recent years.

“We urge your administration to raise this case at the highest levels during meetings with counterparts in the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority and press for full cooperation with a U.S.-led investigation. Furthermore, we urge the State Department to quickly dispatch embassy officials to visit the Rabee and Ijbara families and ensure that they have all support they need during this difficult time, including urgent medical support for Ayoub,” the Senators continued.

“As we continue the work of keeping Americans safe, here at home and around the world, the U.S. must do all it can to seek answers and accountability when Americans are injured or killed,” the Senators concluded.

To read the full text of the letter, click here.

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