New York City politicians spar over Israel, Palestine
The leaders in New York City’s mayoral election both defended Israel over the recent conflict with the Palestinians, though other politicians more to the left spoke in favor of the Palestinian cause.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has again seeped into New York City politics. Some candidates for New York City mayor defended Israel in statements regarding the ongoing violence between Israelis and Palestinians, including the two front-runners in the race.
Democratic candidate Andrew Yang, who also ran for president in 2020, said he is “standing with Israel” and condemned actions by the Palestinian military and political organization Hamas.
“I'm standing with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, and condemn the Hamas terrorists,” Yang said Monday. “The people of NYC will always stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who face down terrorism and persevere.”
Yang walked back the comments on Wednesday, however, after speaking to some of his campaign volunteers. He said his original remarks were "overly simplistic" in a new statement.
