Israel’s war with Hamas has led to divisions in the Democratic Party that threaten Joe Biden with losing the presidential election, The New York Post reports. While the president and older generations support the Gaza operation, younger progressives are calling for an immediate cease-fire and accusing Biden of “abetting genocide.”
Democrats’ internal divisions over the Middle East conflict threaten to split the party ahead of the presidential election, The New York Post reports. Leftists on the national committee and State Department are pressing for a cease-fire and are outraged at the “immoral” support for the massacre of Palestinians.
Officials say the campaign will be long and gruelling. President Joe Biden will make it even more difficult for Democrats: he favours only a “suspension” of hostilities and continued aid to Israel. The Huffington Post reports that on Friday, over 50 national committee staffers (15%) wrote an open letter demanding that party leaders pressure Biden to call for an immediate ceasefire.
As The New York Post explains, the disagreement was mainly between young pro-Palestinian progressives and their older colleagues who support Israel. In 1968, a similar situation at the height of the Vietnam War cost President Lyndon Johnson his re-election. A State Department official repeatedly criticised the president on social media, accusing him of “aiding and abetting genocide”.