As governor of New York, Kathy Hochul has been unequivocal in her support for Israel.
She has firmly rejected calls for New York State to end its financial support of Israel, supported police efforts to quell pro-Palestinian protests and cracked down on academic rhetoric she deemed antisemitic. She even caused a minor international kerfuffle when, in defending Israel’s right to defend itself, she used an analogy that seemed to call for Gaza’s destruction.
But Ms. Hochul struck a far different tone on Thursday, calling for Israeli leaders to work with the United States to ensure that humanitarian aid reached Palestinians in Gaza.
“I have always been a strong supporter of Israel,” Ms. Hochul said, noting her visit to the site of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack and continued advocacy for the release of hostages. “But support for the people of Israel also requires us to demand that the Israeli government do what is right.”
She added that “allowing innocent children to starve to death is simply unconscionable.”
The statement from Ms. Hochul, who presides over a state that has the largest population of Jews outside of Israel, comes amid a growing reassessment of the country’s conduct among its traditional supporters. Experts have warned for months of a starvation crisis, as Israeli blockades restrict the flow of food into the war zone. Israeli soldiers have repeatedly opened fire into crowds amassed to receive aid, killing dozens at a time.
The Gazan Health Ministry has reported more than 40 hunger-related deaths this month, though that number has not been independently verified. The same group has asserted that more than 60,000 Gazans have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7, more than 18,000 of them children.
Human rights organizations in Israel announced last week that their government’s actions constituted genocide, a charge Israel strongly rejects.
Even so, the politics of support for Israel have remained contentious in New York, and Ms. Hochul, who is seeking re-election next year, will have to navigate this fractious divide.
Democrats across the nation have long been proud of their support for Israel, a position reinforced after the Oct. 7 attacks, when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis, the largest mass casualty of Jews since the Holocaust.
But some Democrats — including some who are Jewish — have found themselves at odds with Israel’s right-wing government, arguing that solidarity with the people of Israel did not require unquestioning support for all the state’s actions.
In her statement, Ms. Hochul stopped short of calling for a cease-fire and did not explicitly condemn the Israeli government. Even so, she referred to the starvation of Gazan children, saying, “as a mother, my heart is broken by these images of famine.”
Other Democrats who have criticized Israel include Representative Jerrold Nadler, who spoke at a rally outside the Israeli Consulate in New York on Monday, saying, “we must demand they bring the hostages home; we must demand they end the war in Gaza; and we must demand they surge humanitarian assistance to the starving people of Gaza.”
The Israel-Gaza war has also become an issue in the New York City mayor’s race. Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic mayoral nominee, has faced severe criticism over his support for Palestinians and criticism of Israel, with critics accusing him of antisemitism.
Since winning the Democratic nomination for mayor, Mr. Mamdani has been under pressure to clarify his position — particularly his defense for those who use the phrase “globalize the intifada,” a rallying cry for Palestinians opposing Israeli occupation that many Jews hear as a call for violence. In recent weeks, Mr. Mamdani sought to soften his stance, saying he would discourage usage of the phrase and reiterating his belief in the universal dignity of human life.
Mr. Mamdani’s main opponents, former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams, have largely avoided any criticism of the conditions in Gaza.
Grace Ashford covers New York government and politics for The Times.
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