RESIGNED: The Former Biden Admin Officials Who Left Their Jobs Over Gaza

Friday, April 12, 2024

Featuring Tariq Habash, former official at the U.S. Department of Education, Josh Paul, former official at the U.S. Department of State, Annelle Sheline, & former official at the  U.S. Department of State in conversation with FMEP Fellow Rania Batrice

Listen to this webinar as a podcast

FMEP is honored to host Josh Paul, Tariq Habash, and Annelle Sheline for their first joint public appearance and conversation over their individual decisions to resign from their jobs in the Biden Administration over the President’s policy on Israel, Palestine, and the ongoing war in Gaza. Join us to discuss the Biden Administration’s policy and decision-making, and the possibilities for changing course, as well as the personal stakes, choices, and costs of public protest against the U.S.’s close embrace of Israel and its brutal war on Gaza.

BIOS: 

Rania Batrice is an activist and strategist for progressive change, a public relations specialist, and a political consultant. She is one of two FMEP 2024 Palestinian non-resident Fellows.

Tariq Habash was a political appointee and policy advisor in the Department of Education’s Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development. He worked to overhaul the broken student loan system, provide relief to millions of borrowers, and address inequities across American higher education. Tariq was the second government official, and the only political appointee to resign from the administration due to its policy on Gaza and unrestricted support for Israel’s aggression against Palestinians. Prior to joining the government, Habash was a cofounder of the Student Borrower Protection Center, a national research and advocacy nonprofit where he led the organization’s investigative work on student loan and consumer finance policies. Habash also spent years at The Century Foundation, working on higher education affordability, accountability, and consumer protection issues. He holds degrees from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the University of Miami.

Josh Paul is former Director of Congressional & Public Affairs in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs in the U.S. Department of State, a position from which he resigned in October 2023 due to his disagreement with the U.S. policy of providing lethal arms to Israel in the context of the conflict in Gaza. He previously served in roles including as the desk officer for Iraqi Internal Security Forces in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; as a National Security Consultant to the Government of Iraq on behalf of the United States; as Security Sector Governance Advisor to the Palestinian Authority on behalf of the U.S. Security Coordinator, as a Military Legislative Assistant to a Member of the House Armed Services Committee.

Dr. Annelle Sheline was a foreign affairs officer at the Office of Near Eastern Affairs in the Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. She received her doctorate from George Washington University’s department of political science and her bachelor’s degree from New York University’s Gallatin School.

RESOURCES shared in webinar

• Josh Paul’s resignation statement 
• Tariq Habash’s resignation letter
• Annelle Sheline’s statement explaining her resignation

State department sees unprecedented flood of internal dissent memos over Gaza war, The Independent, 4/8/24

“U.S. floods arms into Israel despite mounting alarm over war’s conduct,” Washington Post, 3/6/24

“US has seen no evidence that Israel has committed genocide, Austin says,” Politico, 4/9/24