Muslims, Democrats and social media customers expressed their displeasure on Wednesday with remarks made by Republican Consultant Andy Ogles of Tennessee, who responded to an activist’s query concerning the deaths of Palestinian youngsters in Gaza by asserting that “we should kill ‘em all”.
In a press release launched Wednesday, the American Muslim Advisory Council (AMAC) “unequivocally” denounced Ogles and wrote that his remarks had been tantamount to advocating for “the extermination of the Palestinian people”.
Noting a rise in anti-Muslim assaults throughout Tennessee since Israel started its indiscriminate bombing and blockade of Gaza in October, AMAC wrote:
“Such rhetoric is not only abhorrent but also antithetical to our values as a state. It is such rhetoric that has continued to foster a political climate where extremist ideologies flourish, empowering neo-Nazis to openly parade through our streets and allowing genocidal sentiments to go unchallenged. This cannot be tolerated any longer. As citizens of Tennessee, we deserve better representation from those elected to office.”
On the social media platform often called X, the opprobrium directed at Ogles was even worse, with one person writing Wednesday:
“Name em and shame em! Say hi to Andrew ‘I think we should kill em all’ Ogles. This extraordinary piece of feces is a USA congressman.”
One other person, posting as Saira Rao, wrote:
“Andrew Ogles, a sitting member of Congress, says the quiet part out loud. ‘I think we should kill ‘em all.’ He states WE [America] are responsible for killing all Palestinians [genocide]. Congress + Biden + Entire Cabinet are ALL WAR CRIMINALS Palestine will be free.”
Noting that Palestinians are additionally Semitic folks, Susan Jones posted on X:
“‘I think we should kill ‘em all.’ @AndrewOgles #SenatorofTennessee Has NO Shame in his admission of #USIsraeliINTENT to commit #USIsraeliGenocide of #IndigenousSEMITICPalestinians and the IRONY is completely lost on the ignorant that #KillingPalestiniansISANTISEMITISM!!!”
Ogles’s feedback had been in response to a pro-Palestinian activist who peppered him with questions as the 2 walked by way of a hall in the USA Capitol.
“I’ve seen the footage of shredded children’s bodies,” the activist instructed Ogles. “That’s my taxpayer dollars that are going to bomb those kids.”
Ogles responded bluntly: “You know what? So, I think we should kill ’em all if that makes you feel better. Hamas and the Palestinians have been attacking Israel for 20 years. It’s time to pay the piper.”
Lastly, Ogles turned in the direction of a digicam and uttered a last remark earlier than strolling away: “Death to Hamas!”
In an e mail to the congressman’s hometown newspaper, The Tennessean, Ogles’s spokesperson Emma Settle wrote: “The Congressman was not referring to Palestinians, he was clearly referring to the Hamas terrorist group.”
They cant even faux it anymore. #AndrewOgles you’re a battle legal #SaveRafah https://t.co/Q4NW6koKwo
— Lea (@LeaOrtizRivera) February 20, 2024
The change between Ogles and the activist occurred on February 15, however video footage of Ogles’s remarks was posted to social media hours after the administration of President Joe Biden vetoed a ceasefire decision on the United Nations Safety Council on Tuesday, representing the third time since Israel’s assault started that the US has voted towards a suspension of hostilities in Gaza.
A primary-term congressman, Ogles represents Tennessee’s gerrymandered fifth district, which was created in 2022 to favour Republican candidates and features a swath of the state capital of Nashville. Hours earlier than the US exercised its veto, a spokesman for the United Nations Kids’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that Gaza is “poised to witness an explosion in preventable child deaths” as malnutrition and illness unfold quickly throughout the enclave.
Israeli forces have killed greater than 12,400 youngsters in Gaza since October 7, in accordance with Palestinian well being authorities. Greater than 600,000 youngsters are at the moment trapped within the metropolis of Rafah on the Egyptian border, with Israeli forces getting ready to invade. Moreover, officers with the charity organisation Save the Kids say that almost 10 Palestinian youngsters in Gaza per day have misplaced one or each of their legs since October.
“After four months of relentless violence, we are running out of words to describe what children and families in Gaza are going through, as well as the tools to respond in any adequate way,” Jason Lee, Save the Kids’s nation director for the occupied Palestinian territory, stated in a press release Tuesday. “The scale of death and destruction is astronomical.”
“Children are being failed by the adults who should be protecting them,” Lee added. “It’s beyond time for the adults in the room to step up their responsibilities and legal obligations to children caught up in a conflict they played no part in, who just want to be able to live.”
A Nashville Metro Council member, Zulfat Suara, instructed The Tennessean that she discovered about Ogles’s feedback whereas at a council assembly Tuesday evening. Coincidentally, on the agenda that night was a decision condemning the general public show of Nazi symbols, chants and hate speech in downtown Nashville throughout a rally final weekend.
Born in Nigeria, Suara, a Democrat, is the primary Muslim particular person elected to the metropolitan authorities of Nashville and Davidson County. She stated that rhetoric like Ogles’s encourages folks “to march and preach hate”.
She instructed The Tennessean: “Within the battle abroad, I’ve been very aware of what I say and the way I say it as a result of I wish to guarantee that my Jewish mates will not be harm in what I say and to guarantee that my Palestinian households are taken care of. However when legislators on the federal stage and the state stage proceed to demonize folks, proceed to solely take a look at one aspect and never the opposite, that’s the consequence that we see on the streets. And I hope that we’ll proceed to do higher.
“This otherization, this demonization, this ‘Kill them all’ is only breaking us apart.”