Israeli ministers who backed ethnic cleansing of Palestinians join New York parade

“Israeli ministers who backed ethnic cleansing of Palestinians join New York parade Submitted by Elis Gjevori on Sun, 05/31/2026 - 22:35 New York's pro-Israel parade hosted ministers who called for starving Palestinians and the use of nuclear weapons on Gaza Thousands of Jewish and Israeli Americans participate in the annual Israeli Day Parade on May 31, 2026, in New York City. (Spence Platt/Getty Images via AFP) Off Israeli ministers who have called for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and the use of nuclear weapons against Gaza took part in New York's annual pro-Israel parade on Sunday, as Israel faces growing isolation abroad over the genocide in Gaza and its wars across the Middle East. Among the delegation was Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, alongside Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu and 13 members of the Knesset. Smotrich has called for Gaza to be emptied of its Palestinian population and for the destruction of the besieged enclave. Middle East Eye reported in May that the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court had filed a secret arrest warrant application for Smotrich over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. MEE understands that the charges against Smotrich include forced displacement as a crime against humanity and war crime, the transfer of Israel’s own population as a war crime, and persecution and apartheid as crimes against humanity. Addressing attendees, Smotrich said the parade "reminds me of the Jerusalem Flag March", an ultra-nationalist procession through Jerusalem's Old City and Muslim Quarter on Jerusalem Day where participants have often chanted "Death to Arabs" and while attacking Palestinian and Christian residents. Eliyahu, another member of the delegation, has previously called for nuclear weapons to be used against Gaza's pre-genocide population of 2.1 million Palestinians. He has also advocated starving Palestinians in the besieged enclave, declaring that "there is no problem bombing their food and fuel reserves. They should starve." The Israel Day Parade has long been a fixture of New York's political calendar and is often viewed as a test of political loyalty to Israel among elected officials. UAE joined US-Israeli war against Iran from the outset: Report Read More » This year, however, the event took place against a backdrop of mounting criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the city's first Muslim mayor and a long-time critic of Israel, boycotted the parade, becoming the first mayor in the event's history not to attend. Mamdani has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and said he would seek to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visited New York City. The boycott comes as public attitudes towards Israel in the United States continue to shift sharply. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in April found that six in 10 Americans now hold an unfavourable view of Israel, up from 53 percent last year and nearly 20 percentage points higher than in 2022. The decline in support has coincided with growing scrutiny of Washington's long-standing backing for Israel, which has received billions of dollars in military aid and diplomatic support from successive US administrations. Israel's image has also been damaged by the economic fallout from the US-Israeli war on Iran. According to Moody's Analytics , American consumers have paid nearly $60bn in additional fuel-related costs in just three months, with the average household spending an extra $447.19 as energy prices and air fares surged. US Politics News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

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