Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) said the United States should not accept refugees who are fleeing the Gaza Strip, even as the war between Israel and the Hamas militant group intensifies over the weekend.
“I am not going to do that,” DeSantis said at a presidential campaign event on Saturday. “You don’t fly people and import them into the United States of America.”
PALESTINIAN TERROR-TIED GROUPS POCKET HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS FROM BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
His comments come after the Israeli military has instructed more than 1 million people located in the northern part of the Gaza Strip to evacuate to the south ahead of an anticipated attack against Hamas, possibly leaving thousands of people displaced as they seek to leave the war-torn country. U.S. officials negotiated a deal with Egypt, Israel, and Qatar to open up the Rafah border for roughly five hours on Saturday to allow U.S. citizens to escape to Egypt, but it’s not entirely clear where refugees may go from there.
However, DeSantis remained adamant the U.S. “cannot accept people from Gaza into this country as refugees,” arguing instead that surrounding “Arab states” should take them in.
The comments could spark some outrage, especially after the Florida governor accused all of the Gaza citizens of being largely “antisemitic.”
“If you look at how they behave, not all of them are Hamas, but they are all antisemitic,” DeSantis said. “None of them believe in Israel’s right to exist.”
That sentiment could find the governor at odds with several Democrats and even some members of his own party who have been careful not to equate all Palestinians with Hamas, the ruling group in Palestine and an organization the U.S. recognizes as a terrorist organization.
DeSantis’s comments run counter to what the Israel Defense Forces have said as well. The army has been criticized for warning civilians to evacuate their homes and cities in northern Gaza ahead of an invasion intended to eradicate Hamas. But the warning came because the Israeli army is concerned about the “humanity” of noncombatants and wants to leave them out of the line of fire, an IDF spokesman said.
“Humanity should go two directions, and our humanity is the fact that we are telling them [to] go [and] stay clear of Gaza City because we’re going to operate,” Jonathan Conricus told CBC News. “That is an actual expression of our humanity, which is in such sharp contrast to the lack of humanity of our enemies.”
“We don’t want civilians in an active combat zone,” he said. “That’s also what we’ve told the Palestinians: ‘It’s an active combat zone, get out.’”
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However, DeSantis has instead called for continued support for Israel, urging a “swift and lethal response” against the militant group after it launched a surprise attack last weekend. The Florida governor also signed an executive order earlier this week directing the state of Florida to arrange charter flights to retrieve U.S. citizens remaining in Israel.
A majority of Americans (65%) say the U.S. government should publicly express its support for Israel as it seeks to fend off an attack against Hamas, compared to just 23% who say the country shouldn’t do anything, according to a recent NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. Another 8% say the country should criticize Israel instead.
