Michigan Senator-Elect Abdul El-Sayed Accuses Israel of Genocide and Apartheid

Newly elected Democratic Senator from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, has strongly denounced Israeli policy, accusing the country of committing "genocide" in Gaza and practicing apartheid in the West Bank. Speaking on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," El-Sayed, the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate, also expressed his willingness to work with Donald Trump to end U.S. military aid to Israel, praising the president's stated intention to cease this assistance by year's end. "We should not continue to subsidize a foreign army that has committed the worst atrocities with our money," he stated, also calling for an end to U.S. arms sales to Israel. Addressing concerns from the Michigan Jewish community about his positions, El-Sayed rejected any conflation of criticism of Israel with antisemitism. He emphasized the need to differentiate between Judaism, the Jewish people, Israel, and its actions, drawing on his childhood experiences with Jewish classmates to illustrate his commitment to interfaith respect. He stated he knows what it means to be a victim of religious discrimination and wants to ensure Jewish children have the same security as his own. El-Sayed also criticized the reactions to his statements, calling it "completely insane" to conclude he hates those committing atrocities simply because he objects to U.S. funding for them. He argued that the U.S. must apply human rights principles equally to all partners, comparing it to his willingness to condemn Egyptian government violations without hostility toward the Egyptian people. These remarks emerge amid growing divisions within the Democratic Party regarding relations with Israel, with El-Sayed's election bolstering the progressive wing's influence in Congress. He intends to advocate for a human rights-based foreign policy, irrespective of traditional alliances. El-Sayed concluded by calling for a peaceful future for both peoples, expressing a desire for a future where Palestinian and Israeli children can envision lives free from violence.