Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein told SCNR News that the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that left 1,200 Israelis dead was a response to “75 years of murderous occupation.”
Stein’s comments were delivered during a March 15 rally in New York City to honor U.S. Air Force member Aaron Bushnell, who committed suicide by self-immolation last month to raise awareness about the genocide of Palestinians.
Stein was approached by SCNR News field reporter Elad Eliahu, who asked the presidential candidate if she would condemn the Oct. 7 attack.
“I always condemn all violations of human rights,” she replied. “At the same time, it’s very important for people to remember that didn’t come out of nowhere. That was a response to basically 75 years of murderous occupation.”
“In my view, none of this is justified,” she continued. “I really understand where the Zionists were coming from: a place of great trauma themselves. That doesn’t justify, then, occupation and apartheid. We’re in this situation that, from the standing way back, you could say this is violence propagating violence. We must stop it all now.” Green Party candidate for President Jill Stein calls the Hamas Oct 7th terrorist attack a “response to 75 years of murderous occupation” https://t.co/AuuAWyEweA pic.twitter.com/42xbdIE6IK
— Timcast News (@TimcastNews) March 15, 2024
When Eliahu asked Stein if she would condemn the attack specifically, without qualifiers, she responded, “I feel like you’re trying to extract October 7 as if it didn’t have 75 years leading up to it.”
During the rally, Stein led the following chant: “Free, free Palestine! From the river to the sea! Palestine will be free!” Green Party nominee for President Jill Stein leads chants of “from the river to the sea, palestine will be free” chants at a NYC vigil for Aaron Bushnell pic.twitter.com/We8ZLBnBGG
— Timcast News (@TimcastNews) March 15, 2024
The rally was held by the feminist, anti-war organization CODEPINK across from the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, on the corner of 1st Avenue and 45th Street.
“The symbolic location was chosen to highlight the need for an immediate cessation of US funding, arming, and political support for Israel, which is committing genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing of Palestine,” CODEPINK said in a statement.
Veterans for Peace, Pal-Awda, Answer, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Palestinian Youth Movement, Mamas 4 a Free Palestine, Green Party USA, Green Party NY and other organizations also sponsored the event.
“Aaron Bushnell gave his life so that America would hear his message: End the genocide,” said Ali Abunimah, founder of the independent, Palestine-focused news outlet Electronic Intifada. “He kept calling 'Free Palestine' through intense, horrifying pain. He gave his life so people in Gaza might live. There’s no greater love than that. I feel sadness and awe for this human being.”
The event featured several artists and activists, including Najla Said, Farid Bitar, Eugene Puryear, and Cornel West, a 2024 presidential candidate for the People’s Party.
Controversial political activist Linda Sarsour also attended and served as an MC.
When Eliahu asked Sarsour if she would condemn the Oct. 7 attack, the activist walked away. When the SCNR News field reporter pressed Sarsour, an attendee wearing a hijab responded, “Will you condemn 75 years of occupation?”
At that point, a police officer told Eliahu, “Don’t do that here. You’re gonna stop doing that.” Linda Sarsour taps me on the arm, flees and hides her face when I ask her if she’ll condemn Hamas Oct 7th terrorist attack on Israel https://t.co/BTwneBdimY pic.twitter.com/ci4CoFx9hI
— Timcast News (@TimcastNews) March 15, 2024
A March 15 TIME report said the claim that 30,000 Gazans have been killed, a figure reported by the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, is “likely conservative. The science is extremely clear.”
“The Gazan numbers were plausible and credible,” the outlet writes, citing December critiques from Johns Hopkins and The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
On Jan. 26, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled 15-2 that there is sufficient basis to determine that Israel is committing genocide in its handling of the Gaza crisis.
ICJ ordered Israel to “take all measures within its power” to cease acts that violate the Genocide Convention, to which it has been a signatory since 1949.
Stein, a Harvard educated doctor, is described on her website as “a pioneering environmental health advocate, and an organizer for people, planet, and peace.” She was the Green Party’s nominee for president in 2012 and 2016, a year in which she received about 1.5 million votes.
