A California city is facing criticism from local Jewish leaders for becoming the first in the United States to publicly condemn the state of Israel, accusing it of “ethnic cleansing.”
The statement comes two weeks after Hamas’ horrific attack that left more than 1,400 Israelis dead, most of whom were civilians.
Richmond, California, a city about 18 miles north of San Francisco, voted 5-1 to pass a resolution that it said recognized the suffering of Palestinians but accused Israel of ethnic cleansing.
“The City of Richmond stands in solidarity with the Palestinian people of Gaza, who are currently facing a campaign of ethnic cleansing and collective punishment at the hands of the State of Israel.”
Mayor Eduardo Martinez, a Democrat, claims he voted for the resolution because he believes American taxpayers are responsible for what he called an “apartheid state.”
Mayor Eduardo Martinez, a Democrat, claims he voted for the resolution because he believes American taxpayers are responsible for what he called an “apartheid state.”
“The people of the United States, whose government and taxpayer dollars directly support the Israeli military, have an immediate moral obligation to condemn Israel’s collective punishment in the apartheid state,” Martinez said, according to NBC San Francisco.
The city added that they “affirm the city’s support and solidarity with the Palestinian people of Gaza.”
However, the resolution has angered local Jewish groups, including condemnation from the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco.
“The resolution promotes propaganda, weaponizes historical inaccuracies and accuses Israel of ethnic cleansing and apartheid in Gaza,” the statement said.
“The resolution was changed during the process, but remained inflammatory and biased.” Also notable was the vitriol of those in favor of the resolution.”
Despite his inflammatory rhetoric, Mayor Martinez maintains that the shocking resolution promotes peace.
“This proclamation puts human lives before politics,” Martinez said.
He also claimed that calling Israel an ethnic cleanser and an apartheid state is not anti-Semitism.
Richmond, California, a city about 18 miles north of San Francisco, voted 5-1 to pass a resolution that it said recognized the suffering of Palestinians but accused Israel of ethnic cleansing
The resolution has angered local Jewish groups, including condemnation from the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco
“I reject the idea that speaking out against Israel’s military and right-wing government is anti-Semitic,” he added.
“We should never remain silent when it comes to any group. “The Palestinian people are currently having to deal with what the United Nations describes as war crimes committed by the State of Israel.”
However, one woman who spoke before the resolution was passed compared his council to the Third Reich.
“To see the Richmond City Council propose this (resolution) is a neglect of the Jewish community,” one woman said. “They hate Jews,” said one resident. “You are the new Nazis.”
They received an award from the Arab Resource & Organizing Center in San Francisco.
“We stand with you as the tide turns in the United States, as more and more decision-makers heed the calls of the masses and stand up for Palestinian freedom,” the group said in a statement.
“We still have a long way to go and are proud that the Bay Area is taking the lead.”
This comes at a time when the rhetoric is still red-hot and the number of anti-Semitic incidents is increasing in the wake of the attacks.
There was great consternation during the public comment period. One woman who spoke before the resolution was passed compared the council to the Third Reich
Despite his inflammatory rhetoric, Mayor Martinez maintains that the shocking resolution promotes peace
Many have called for an end to US aid to Israel as it defends itself against Hamas terrorists, who have held around 200 people hostage since their brutal massacre on October 7 that killed 1,400 people.
But many view their protests in favor of Hamas, which carried out a brutal terrorist attack on the Jewish state on October 7.
Earlier this week, Israel hosted a 45-minute screening of video footage recovered from the body cameras and smartphones of dead Hamas gunmen showing the brutality of their October 7 raids.
According to journalists who attended the screening, the footage showed clip after clip of civilians being shot, stabbed, tortured and burned.
Their bodies were laid out for all to see – bound, gagged and riddled with bullet holes and knife wounds.
Others were decapitated with knives – and one victim was partially decapitated with a garden hoe while lying with a gunshot wound to the stomach.
A young girl was seen hiding under a desk and waiting as the terrorists decided her fate. Moments later they shot her at close range.
A clip showed the moment a Hamas terrorist threw a grenade at a father and his son.
A body lies covered on the ground in an Israeli kibbutz after a mass attack by armed Hamas fighters from the Gaza Strip
The explosion kills the father, who throws himself forward into the grass while the boy is covered in blood.
The child is dragged inside and forced to sit next to his brother, whose eyes are bloody – either from shrapnel from the grenade explosion or from torture.
One of the boys sobs, “Why am I alive?” as the ruthless terrorists stand over his father’s body.
Another grim film clip showed unsuspecting IDF soldiers being beheaded, leaving their headless corpses sprawled on the streets, while a contingent of female soldiers were incapacitated by a grenade before being shot at point-blank range.
The journalists also said they witnessed sheer panic, terror and devastation at the Nova music festival, where more than 250 civilians were slaughtered.
Some victims hid in containers, others in portable toilets, but all were found and either shot or brutally beaten before being taken hostage.
Over the past three weeks, President Joe Biden has offered Israel his full support since 1,400 people were killed in a terrorist attack nearly three weeks ago.
He has increased the deployment of U.S. forces by sending two U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups to the region, and last week he advocated offering financial help.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen speaks during a Security Council meeting about the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas
Forensic investigators search the rubble of an Israeli house burned down by Hamas
Israel is preparing for a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, from where Hamas terrorists launched their attack.
Its forces have effectively laid siege to the small Palestinian territory, cutting off supplies of food, fuel, water and medicine except for a small number of aid trucks from Egypt.
Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister said Hamas was ready to release civilian prisoners, while saying the world should support the release of 6,000 Palestinian prisoners.
According to the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Ministry of Health, the Israeli invasion of Gaza began last night and the death toll in Gaza has risen to over 7,000 civilians, including 3,000 children.