Dem Rep. Crow: Israel's Military Tactics Are 'Fueling' Extremism in Middle East, Attacks on U.S.

On Tuesday’s “CNN News Central,” Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) discussed a letter he wrote with other House Democrats criticizing Israel’s military strategy and stated that they are concerned that “the manner in which this operation is being conducted” “is fueling, we think, extremism in the region.” And that “It is unacceptable that we are seeing the level of civilian casualties that we see in Gaza.” He also stated that “we have to make sure that American interests are being served, American security is being served. There have been over 100 attacks on U.S. bases, installations, and ships in the region in the last two months. Those attacks continue to increase. So, we have to make sure that American interests are being served as well as Israeli interests and that’s why we sent that message through this letter.”

Crow said, “We have been expressing these concerns over the last couple of months in private, as allies and partners do. We are a partner and a strong ally of Israel and they are of us. So, making sure that we expressed our concerns in private, but those concerns have not been adequately heard, so that’s why we made this letter public. So, continuing to push, and as we said, use our leverage as an essential partner to Israel, to impact that change, and put in appropriate guardrails because we have to make sure that American interests are being served, American security is being served. There have been over 100 attacks on U.S. bases, installations, and ships in the region in the last two months. Those attacks continue to increase. So, we have to make sure that American interests are being served as well as Israeli interests and that’s why we sent that message through this letter.”

Later, he added, “[W]e are concerned that there is a reduction in support for Israel because of the conduct of their campaign in Gaza. So, we want to make sure that we are shoring up that support, both within the United States and internationally. And that’s why we expressed concerns about the manner in which this operation is being conducted, both that it is fueling, we think, extremism in the region. It is unacceptable that we are seeing the level of civilian casualties that we see in Gaza. And of course, the public sentiment, we think, is turning as well, both in the United States and internationally. And these are all reasons why we felt compelled to write this letter.”

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