Kathy Hochul apologized on Friday for remarks she made at a Jewish philanthropy event in New York City that went viral on social media and suggested Israel had justification to destroy Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
“If Canada someday ever attacked Buffalo, I’m sorry, my friends, there would be no Canada the next day,” Hochul said in a portion of her speech on Thursday at an event for the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York.
In a statement on Friday night, Hochul said she regretted “using an inappropriate analogy that I now realize could be hurtful to members of our community,” and she apologized for her “poor choice of words.”
“While I have been clear in my support of Israel’s right to self-defence, I have also repeatedly said and continue to believe that Palestinian civilian casualties should be avoided and that more humanitarian aid must go to the people of Gaza,” the governor said.
The humanitarian crisis has left Gaza’s population of more than two million people on the brink of starvation.
Rights advocates have noted a rise in antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias in the U.S. since the start of the war, and protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza have occurred in many cities.
The original article contains 326 words, the summary contains 205 words. Saved 37%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Kathy Hochul apologized on Friday for remarks she made at a Jewish philanthropy event in New York City that went viral on social media and suggested Israel had justification to destroy Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
“If Canada someday ever attacked Buffalo, I’m sorry, my friends, there would be no Canada the next day,” Hochul said in a portion of her speech on Thursday at an event for the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York.
In a statement on Friday night, Hochul said she regretted “using an inappropriate analogy that I now realize could be hurtful to members of our community,” and she apologized for her “poor choice of words.”
“While I have been clear in my support of Israel’s right to self-defence, I have also repeatedly said and continue to believe that Palestinian civilian casualties should be avoided and that more humanitarian aid must go to the people of Gaza,” the governor said.
The humanitarian crisis has left Gaza’s population of more than two million people on the brink of starvation.
Rights advocates have noted a rise in antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias in the U.S. since the start of the war, and protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza have occurred in many cities.
The original article contains 326 words, the summary contains 205 words. Saved 37%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!