‘Squad’ Member Jamaal Bowman Walks Back Claim Hamas Rapes ‘Propaganda’

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a member of the left-wing “Squad” in the Democratic caucus, walked back claims he made in November on Tuesday that reports of rapes committed by Hamas terrorists were Israeli “propaganda.”

In a now-viral video that resurfaced from TikTok, Bowman told a rally held on November 17 in Westchester, New York, that the claims of rape, among other claims, were mere “propaganda” justifying the “siege” of Gaza.

Daniel Lippman of Politico reports that Bowman has walked those remarks back, citing a United Nations report:

In a statement after his brief interview with POLITICO, Bowman contradicted his previous remarks. He and his team did not deny that he made them. The “propaganda” comment was one of several comments he’s had to walk back on in recent months, including raising conspiracy theories about the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

“As I said at this rally, what Hamas did on October 7th is a war crime and they must release all the hostages,” he said. “The UN confirmed that Hamas committed rape and sexual violence, a reprehensible fact that I condemn entirely. I also voted yes on Resolution 966, which officially condemns the rape and sexual violence committed by Hamas. So let me be clear, and ensure my words are not twisted: I always stand against sexual violence in all forms and stand for peace for all.”

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Bowman, who lost the support of the progressive pro-Israel group J Street in January because of his “singling out” of Israel for responsibility for the war and his embrace of anti-Israel activist Norman Finkelstein, is facing a serious primary challenger [George Latimer] who is targeting the Squad member for his stance on Israel.

As Breitbart News reported in early march, the United Nations acknowledged in a report that Hamas had committed rape and sexual violence against Israeli women (and men) while murdering 1,200 during its October 7 terror attack.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent book, “The Zionist Conspiracy (and how to join it),” now available on Audible. He is also the author of the e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.