Georgia's only Palestinian, Jewish lawmakers sound off on Israel-Hamas war

ATLANTA - Rep. Ruwa Romman (D-Dist. 97) is the only Palestinian-American in the Georgia General Assembly.

Rep. Esther Panitch (D-Dist. 51) is the only Jewish-American in the Georgia General Assembly.

Both have family in the conflicting Middle East. Both say something must be done, but they have very differing opinions on what that "something" should be.

"All of this has been very personal," said Rep. Romman.

Georgia Rep. Ruwa Romman (D-Dist.-97)

Romman's family lives in the West Bank, about a two-hour drive from Gaza.

"I cannot begin to explain the heartbreak we have been feeling," she said.

War in the region has claimed the lives of thousands of Palestinians and launched a humanitarian crisis.

"I have been getting daily text messages from community members who have said I’ve lost this many family members," she told FOX 5. "Just constant announcements of family members missing, dead, starving."

Roman told FOX 5 she believed Israel has been committing genocide.

"Every university in Gaza has been destroyed," she said. "Every hospital has been damaged or destroyed. Homes of people have been destroyed."

Rep. Panitch said there's another side to that war.

"There are rockets that still come into Israel from the north and from the south, from Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza," she told FOX 5.

Georgia Rep. Esther Panitch, (D-Dist. 51)

Panitch's family lives in southern Israel.

"They're very stressed," she said.

Israel has bombarded Gaza for months in response to the Hamas surprise attack that killed more than 1,400 Israelis on Oct. 7.

"Israel is defending itself," she said.

Panitch says Hamas committed genocide when it attacked Israel.

"Hamas went after civilians in Israel indiscriminately. They killed, they raped, they took hostages and butcher in the most vile of ways," Panitch said.

Both state lawmakers want peace. But, they differ on how to get there.

"I want Hamas to give back the hostages. I want them to surrender. Because that’s how wars end, with one party surrendering. Hamas cannot be allowed to stay in power. They need to be stopped, they need to be eradicated and Israel should not stop until that’s done," Panitch said.

"We need to see an immediate, permanent ceasefire. We need to condition weapons to Israel because the government is not being responsive to our asks. And we need a flood of humanitarian aid," Romman said.