The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on New York elected officials to apologize for their participation in the Israel Day Parade, where they marched alongside extremist Israeli officials, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. CAIR urged these officials to publicly repudiate what it termed Israel’s "genocide in Gaza" and other "crimes against humanity."
Smotrich, who participated in the annual New York City parade, has faced international condemnation for his rhetoric, support for illegal settlements, and advocacy of policies targeting Palestinian civilians. In 2024, CAIR said his call to “annihilate” cities and refugee camps in Gaza was evidence of Israel’s "genocidal intent."
CAIR stated, “New York elected officials who chose to march in the Israel Parade alongside genocidal leaders like Bezalel Smotrich and ignore the Israeli government's ongoing crimes against humanity should apologize to their constituents and to all people of conscience.” The organization added that such participation "helps normalize hatred, apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and genocide."
The civil rights group further asserted that officials claiming to support human rights, racial justice, and religious freedom "cannot credibly stand with figures who have openly advocated the dispossession and dehumanization of Palestinians." CAIR demanded that every participating elected official repudiate Israel’s actions in Gaza, renounce Smotrich’s ideology, and apologize for validating it.
Separately, CAIR and its San Francisco Bay Area chapter (CAIR-SFBA) condemned the appointment of venture capitalist Shaun Maguire to a Pentagon advisory board. They said, “Someone with a history of racist and bigoted remarks has no place advising the Pentagon,” and that the appointment "sends a disturbing message to every American who supports human rights and the First Amendment."