Overview

• Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand told a Borough Park roundtable that chants like “from the river to the sea” and “globalize the intifada” are received as meaning end Israel and destroy Jews.
• She called intifada terrorism rather than a social movement and described the rhetoric as damaging to Jewish students and communities.
• Gillibrand said she will work with Democrats who use such language to explain its impact and to counter antisemitism, asserting that nine out of ten Democrats are pro-Israel.
• Her remarks followed weeks of scrutiny of New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s stance on the slogan, which he said on Sunday he now discourages as his views have changed.
• The senator linked much Democratic criticism to frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right Israeli coalition politics, noting that poor phrasing can be perceived as anti-Israel.