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Bernie Sanders rejects ceasefire in Gaza, leftists fume

November 6, 2023 | | Print Article

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) weighed in on Israel’s war against the terrorist group Hamas to say he didn’t believe a ceasefire is possible but that he supports a “pause,” angering leftists who have been demanding nothing less.

Sanders’ position seemed to line up with that of President Joe Biden who has also called for a “pause” rather than a full cease-fire as the conflict heads into its fourth week after Hamas terrorists unleashed an attack on Israel last month. The senator’s reaction to the latest on the war included critical comments on Israel’s bombing of Gaza while also rebuking Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“I want to just clarify one thing, Senator, if I might. You support a humanitarian pause in Gaza. Some of your fellow progressives say that there should be a full-on cease-fire, which would require an agreement on both sides to halt the fighting,” CNN host Dana Bash said in an interview with Sanders on “State of the Union” Sunday.

“Do you support a cease-fire? And, if not, why not?” she asked.

“Well, I don’t know how you can have a cease-fire, permanent cease-fire, with an organization like Hamas, which is dedicated to turmoil and chaos and destroying the state of Israel,” Sanders replied.

“And I think what the Arab countries in the region understand, is that Hamas has got to go. So what we need right now, the immediate task right now is to end the bombing, to end the horrific humanitarian disaster, to build, go forward with the entire world for a two-tier, two-state solution to the crisis to give the Palestinian people hope,” he added.

During the discussion, Sanders also expressed his hope that Israel would rid itself of Netanyahu, calling the current government there “racist.”

“This is a horrendously complex issue,” he told Bash. “You got a right-wing government in Israel, which is racist. And the people by the way, but the good news is last poll, I saw only 18 percent of the people of Israel want Netanyahu to stay in office. I hope they get rid of him. I hope they put in a government, which understands the severity of the crisis.”

“But there got to be a better way than killing thousands of men, women and children. So once again, the immediate concern is you gotta have a pause in the bombing. You got to take care of immediate disaster,” Sanders added

But it was the senator’s view on a ceasefire that really riled up progressives who took to social media to call him out, including Briahna Joy Gray – the former National Press Secretary for the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign – who declared he was the “Biggest political disappointment of our generation.

Plenty of others on X mocked Gray and others for their criticism of Sanders.

Frieda Powers
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