Democratic Whip Katherine Clark appeared to refer to Israel’s offensive in Gaza as a “genocide” during a forum Thursday, according to video of the event viewed by POLITICO.
Clark called on those in the audience to “take action in time to make a difference, … whether that is stopping the starvation and genocide and destruction of Gaza, or whether that means we are working together to stop the redistricting that is going on, taking away the vote from people in order to retain power,” she said at the forum, which was organized by the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a nonpartisan Quaker organization.
Democrats across the ideological spectrum have increasingly been critical of Israel’s tactics in recent weeks, amid warnings from international aid groups of famine and reports of a rising death toll in Gaza. In a statement posted on X last month, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote that the “humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached a breaking point” during President Donald Trump’s first six months in office.
And 2028 Democratic presidential hopefuls are already facing scrutiny over their stances on the conflict.
Clark’s office didn’t walk back the characterization but said the Massachusetts Democrat’s position on the fighting in the region has not changed.
“Whip Clark’s position on the war has not changed,” Clark spokesperson Joy Lee said in a statement to POLITICO. “The Israeli and Palestinian people deserve security and peace. It can only be achieved through a permanent ceasefire, the immediate return of the remaining hostages and a surge of humanitarian aid to Gaza.”
“It should not be controversial to say that Israeli children did not deserve to be kidnapped and murdered by Hamas, nor should it be controversial to say that Palestinian children, who bear no responsibility for Hamas’ atrocities, do not deserve to be killed by war or starvation,” Lee added. “A secure future for Israeli and Palestinian children demands a real two-state solution and a permanent end to efforts to deny their rights to exist.”
Global outrage at the crisis in Gaza has been rising for months and has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks amid Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans for a full-scale occupation and increasingly dire reports of starvation throughout the region.
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