President Joe Biden blasted progressive fellow Democrats who criticize Israel, calling them “isolated and wrong” on Wednesday.
Hours after touching down in Israel on the first day of his Middle East trip, Biden said harsh critics of the Jewish state are misguided.
“There are few of them. I think they’re wrong. I think they’re making a mistake,” Biden told an Israeli TV channel.
He said he “make(s) no apology” for America’s “bone strong” partnership with the Jewish state despite some disagreements over the conflict with the Palestinians and human rights issues.
“Israel is a democracy. Israel is our ally. Israel is a friend,” Biden said.
Progressives, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., have fiercely criticized Israel for its 55-year occupation of Palestinian lands and discrimination against Arabs within Israel itself.
Biden said those critics are a small minority in the Democratic Party and among Republicans as well.
“(There’s) no possibility, I think, of the Democratic Party or even a significant portion of the Republican Party walking away from Israel,” Biden said.
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