Austin, speaking during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, said the U.S. doesn’t “have any evidence of genocide” after protesters interrupted the panel and called for the U.S. to stop funding the war, which they referred to as a genocide.
Austin also avoided referring to the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on southern Israel as a genocide after questioning from Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), ranking member on the committee.
“It certainly is a war crime,” Austin said of the Oct. 7 attacks after Wicker repeatedly pressed him on referring to it as a genocide.
Hamas killed more than 1,100 people in the attack and took 240 hostages. About 100 hostages are believed to still be alive in Gaza and held by Hamas.
Israel, in turn, has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians in its response, while triggering fears of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza as people fled to the southern part of the territory.
The protesters that interrupted the hearing made it into the room while Austin was delivering his opening remarks on the Pentagon’s 2025 budget request, forcing the committee to pause while police removed them from the room.
“Stop killing my people,” one demonstrator said. “Stop funding Israel.”
Several protesters began chanting “stop the genocide in Gaza,” and at least one person said the U.S. should try to work on addressing issues like health care and climate change instead of sending money to Israel.
The Biden administration has come under increasing pressure from the left to back a permanent cease-fire in Gaza and to withhold arms to Israel. President Biden has accused Israel’s government of going over the top with its response to Hamas while urging it to do more to protect civilians, but he has held off on demanding a permanent cease-fire.
To try to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the U.S. has begun a military operation to establish a pier in Gaza to deliver aid by sea, which Austin said will be operational by the third week of April.
“It is something that we have the ability to do and we should do,” Austin said of the pier.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
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