Conservative political commentator Candace Owens received support on Friday from pro-Palestinian social media users for her opposition to genocide amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
On October 7, Hamas led the deadliest Palestinian militant attack on Israel in history. Israel subsequently launched its heaviest-ever airstrikes on Gaza. According to Israeli officials, 1,400 people in Israel were killed in Hamas' attack, the Associated Press reported, while 9,488 Palestinians have been killed since Saturday, according to officials from the health ministry in Gaza, the AP reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his country is "at war" and has cut off supplies of food, fuel, electricity and medicine into Gaza.
Owens wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday: "No government anywhere has a right to commit a genocide, ever. There is no justification for a genocide. I can't believe this even needs to be said or is even considered the least bit controversial to state."
Newsweek reached out to Owens via email for comment.
Although Owens later said that she was not referring to any specific government, her comment comes as pro-Palestinian activists and progressive politicians in the U.S. House of Representatives accuse Israel of carrying out a genocide in Gaza.
The United Nations (UN) describes genocide as "a crime committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, in whole or in part."
Meanwhile, supporters of Israel deny claims that the country is carrying out a genocide against Palestinians.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a Jewish nonprofit that fights against antisemitism, said in response to these claims: "Genocide is a legal term, and in no way do Israeli policies and actions meet this legal threshold." The ADL added that using the term genocide in this context "is not only inaccurate and misleading, but it serves to demonize the State of Israel and to diminish recognized acts of genocide."
Newsweek has reached out to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) for comment.
Meanwhile, Owens is known for her controversial views on issues like the Black Lives Matter movement and COVID-19, but Friday's post, which she wrote should not be controversial, turned heads.
"Sorry for all the hate you'll get for this@RealCandaceO," X user Omar Freij wrote. "Thank you for standing up for basic human principles."
User Samah Fadil wrote: "Candace Owens is now to the left of Biden and Bernie Sanders what the f*** timeline is this."
"You know they've lost the plot when I find myself agreeing with Candace Owens," Karen Attiah, a columnist for The Washington Post who has been critical of Israel and voiced support for Palestinians, wrote on X, sharing the conservative commentators "genocide" post.
President Joe Biden has maintained his position on a two-state solution, which would recognize Palestine and Israel as two separate states in an effort to promote peace in the region.
However, Biden, along with progressive senators like Bernie Sanders of Vermont have refrained from calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Senator Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, became the first senator to do so on Thursday, with the caveat that Hamas releases over 200 hostages that were taken during its surprise attack on Israel last month.
An X user who goes by Sydney commented: "The fact that elon musk and candace owens are sharing this opinion while joe biden isn't really shocks me."
Musk announced on October 28 that his company SpaceX would help humanitarian groups in Gaza communicate with Starlink internet terminals after Israeli airstrikes cut almost all internet and cellular communications in the region.
"This world is in shambles why is candace owens finally making sense," X user who goes by Kira commented, while user Q. Anthony Ali wrote, "Candace Owens straight yamming on Zionists was NOT on my 2023 bingo card."
Owens, however, received backlash from some of her fellow conservatives.
Darrell Scott, a pastor and former advisor to former President Donald Trump, wrote on X: "Candace Owens implied that Israels retaliation against Hamas is genocide. I tried to tell the 'Right' that she was fulla [poop emoji], but they didn't wanna listen. She's now biting the hand(s) that have been feeding her for years."
Owens also got into a tiff with conservative political commentator Dave Rubin.
"Well as I'm sure you know Candace, the Palestinian population has 5x'd in a few decades," Rubin wrote on X, alongside a graph of Palestinian population growth. "But thank you for taking a strong stand against Hamas' stated genocide of the Jews, which is in their charter."
Owens replied: "What's amazing about this is that I did not name any country in this tweet. I simply stated that genocide is wrong— ALWAYS. This is not a controversial stance. Interesting how you interpreted it."
In a follow-up post to Rubin, she wrote: "In short— If the blanket statement that genocide is wrong upsets you in any way, then you need to check yourself. I said exactly what I meant and I won't be backing down or apologizing or further clarifying this statement."
Newsweek reached out to Rubin and Scott via email for comment.
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Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in ... Read more
