Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) became the first senator to declare Israel’s conduct in its war in Gaza a genocide on Wednesday.
Sanders, in an op-ed titled “It is Genocide” posted to his campaign website, laid out his thoughts on the conflict.
He began his essay saying Israel had a right to defend itself after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, but took the conflict to “an all-out war against the entire Palestinian people.”
“Many legal experts have now concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. The International Association of Genocide Scholars concluded that ‘Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide,’” Sanders wrote.
“The Israeli human rights groups B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel have reached the same conclusion, as have international groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch,” he added.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 65,000 Palestinians have died so far in the Israel-Hamas war.
“Just yesterday, an independent commission of experts appointed by the United Nations echoed this finding. These experts concluded that: ‘It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention,’” Sanders continued.
Sanders said he agrees with the experts.
Israel this week began a ground offensive into Gaza City and has stretched the Trump administration’s patience with a recent strike on Hamas officials in Qatar. President Donald Trump disapproved of the strikes on the land of an American ally.
“This was a decision made by Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu; it was not a decision made by me,” Trump wrote.
Trump reacted to Israel’s new offensive in Gaza by accusing Hamas of using human shields.
“We’re going to see what happens because I hear Hamas is trying to use the old human shield deal, and if they do that, they’re going to be in big trouble,” Trump said as he left the White House on Tuesday.
Sanders accused the administration of supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s agenda to make way for the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
“Having made life unlivable through bombing and starvation, they are pushing for ‘voluntary’ migration of Palestinians to neighboring countries to make way for President Trump’s twisted vision of a ‘Riviera of the Middle East,’” Sanders wrote.
Vermont’s only U.S. representative, Rep. Becca Balint (D-VT), also said Wednesday that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza.
“Today, I believe the Israeli government is committing a genocide against the Palestinian people. As the granddaughter of a man murdered in the Holocaust, it is not easy for me to say that,” she wrote.
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“But the trauma of the Holocaust serves as a reminder of the power of speaking out. I feel compelled to speak out because I know there are so many others like me who are horrified by what they see,” Balint added.
Balint and Sanders are the first Jewish Americans in Congress to say Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
