GREENFIELD — City Council voted 6-2 with two abstentions on Monday to send a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza to the offices of President Joe Biden, U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern.

The resolution states that since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, close to 90% of Gaza’s population had been displaced, and roughly 130 Israeli hostages remain in Hamas’ captivity, with 32,000 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis killed. It also mentions that the targeting of civilians in war violates international law, and calls on the federal government to withhold U.S. funding to Israel until there is a “sustained cease-fire” in Gaza and a release of all hostages.

“The Greenfield City Council urges suspension of unconditional military aid to Israel and a redirection of military spending toward goals that support the lives and livelihoods of the American public,” the resolution states. “Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza are at imminent risk of death by starvation and disease, and there is an increasing risk of wider regional and global war resulting from the current crisis that would threaten millions of lives, including Americans.”

The vote followed about 30 minutes of impassioned public comment at the virtual meeting, in which more than 20 speakers, each of whom were limited to two minutes of speaking time, expressed their views on the current state of the Israel-Palestine conflict and whether the city should take an official stance on the matter.

The council held the single-topic meeting after numerous residents carrying signs and banners pushed for the resolution during public comment at the council’s Feb. 21 meeting, which corresponded with a petition on change.com, signed by more than 370 people, urging the city to sign a cease-fire resolution. Activists supporting the resolution also are demonstrating weekly on the Greenfield Common, with the most recent protest occurring at Baystate Franklin Medical Center on Monday morning.

Retired nurse and Western Mass. Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) activist Emily Greene spoke in support of the cease-fire resolution, highlighting Israel’s bombing of hospitals and civilians in Gaza as acts of genocide. Greene referenced the death of Hind Rajab, a young Palestinian girl who was killed in Gaza City alongside her family members and two rescue workers who were searching for her.

“What’s happening in Gaza, there’s no other way to look at it except that it’s total destruction and genocide,” Greene said. “The dangers to paramedics were highlighted in late January of this year when two were killed trying to reach a 6-year-old girl named Hind Rajab who was trapped in her family car in Gaza City and surrounded by the bodies of dead relatives after the car came under gunfire. She called and begged for help, but they, of course, couldn’t get there and she died. She died along with 12,000 Palestinian children.”

While the overwhelming majority of those who spoke did so in support of the resolution, others said they did not believe local government should weigh in on foreign policy matters, such as resident Stephanie Duclos, who encouraged the council to spend its time focusing on issues that more directly impact Greenfield residents. Duclos referred to those who supported the resolution as a “small group of local activists” who are likely to “bully” the council into “more contemptuous” resolutions in the future.

“I guess the most pressing, most important resolution requiring a special meeting is this cease-fire resolution, something you have no power to enforce. What will your vote change?” Duclos asked the council. “There’s a lot of things that affect the city of Greenfield. This is not something that we can change. You can bring this to the State House. You can bring it to Washington D.C. if you must, you could bring it to the military complexes that feed these war efforts. This does nothing but bring divisiveness within the town.”

Councilors Rachel Gordon and Marianne Bullock — the resolution’s two City Council sponsors — both voted in support of it, alongside Councilors Katherine Golub, Wahab Minhas, John Garrett and Lora Wondolowski. Councilors Michael Mastrototaro and Penny Ricketts abstained, and Council President John Bottomley did not vote.

Prior to the final roll call, the council approved Garrett’s motion to amend the resolution, making some minor wording changes, including the replacement of “permanent cease-fire” with “peace and cease-fire.” Garrett said the motivation to do so came from an understanding of the long and violent history between Israel and Palestine, and the fact that a permanent cease-fire seemed unrealistic.

“There’s going to be rockets fired and saying ‘permanent’ is, unfortunately, I think, not a likely outcome in the near term,” he said, proposing that the resolution’s language be more about peace.

Bullock previously noted her stance against war and in favor of a cease-fire developed from stories about her grandfather’s service in World War II, which she said taught her about the importance of “fighting fascism” and the belief that “war and occupation is good for no one, except for businesses and arms dealers.”

Although Bottomley did not comment or vote on the resolution Monday evening, he said last week that he “seriously questioned” the benefits of City Council debating national issues.

“We have many local issues that need addressing, which impact our residents,” Bottomley said, “but part of our process is to respond to what constituents want. Several councilors sponsored this resolution, so we will take it up.”

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.