'It Is Genocide': Sanders Says Israel Is 'Openly Pursuing a Policy of Ethnic Cleansing' in Gaza

Joining numerous genocide and Holocaust experts, human rights groups in Israel and around the world, and a United Nations commission, Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday accused the Israeli government of engaging in a genocide against the Palestinian people.

In an editorial titled "It Is Genocide," the independent Vermont senator leveled his harshest criticism yet of the far-right Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Picking up on the findings of a report from the United Nations’ (UN) commission of inquiry released on Tuesday, Sanders recounted the massive human suffering that Israel has inflicted on Gaza in the 23 months since Hamas launched a surprise attack that killed 1,200 Israelis.

"Out of a population of 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza, Israel has now killed some 65,000 people and wounded roughly 164,000," he wrote. "The full toll is likely much higher, with many thousands of bodies buried under the rubble. A leaked classified Israeli military database indicates that 83% of those killed have been civilians. More than 18,000 children have been killed, including 12,000 aged 12 or younger."

The raw death toll doesn't capture the extent of Israel's genocidal actions, Sanders continued, and he pointed to the systematic destruction of infrastructure in Gaza that has made the exclave unlivable.

"Satellite imagery shows that the Israeli bombardment has destroyed 70% of all structures in Gaza," he said. "The UN estimates that 92% of housing units have been damaged or destroyed. At this very moment, Israel is demolishing what's left of Gaza City. Most hospitals have been destroyed, and almost 1,600 healthcare workers have been killed. Almost 90% of water and sanitation facilities are now inoperable."

Sanders went on to accuse Israel of "openly pursuing a policy of ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank" with the full support of the US government. He also noted the consistently dehumanizing rhetoric that high-level Israeli officials have used against Palestinians, including statements labeling them "animals," as well as a desire to erase "all of Gaza from the face of the earth."

In response to this genocide, Sanders said, "we must use every ounce of our leverage to demand an immediate ceasefire, a massive surge of humanitarian aid facilitated by the UN, and initial steps to provide Palestinians with a state of their own."

Pro-Palestinian activists have pushed Sanders for nearly two years to label Israel's actions a genocide. While he has consistently condemned the Israeli military's mass killings of Palestinian civilians, Wednesday marked the first time he described them as a genocide.

Twenty members of Congress have now described Israel's assault as a genocide, according to Prem Thakker of Zeteo. Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) also said Wednesday that she believes "Israel is committing a genocide against the Palestinian people." She and Sanders are the first Jewish members of Congress to say so.

"I feel compelled to speak out," said Balint, "because I know there are so many others like me who are horrified by what they see."