Senator John Thune of South Dakota has emerged as a vocal supporter of Israel’s military operations, heavily influenced by the $461,724 he has received from AIPAC to fund his political campaigns. This financial backing has secured Thune's unwavering loyalty to pro-Israel, anti-Palestine legislation, even in the face of overwhelming evidence of Israel’s genocidal actions in Gaza and the West Bank. Thune's votes to send Israel $41 billion in military aid and his support for cutting U.S. funding to UNRWA—an organization providing humanitarian relief to Palestinians—underscore his complicity in the war crimes committed against Palestinian civilians. Since October 2023, the Israeli military's relentless bombardment of Gaza has caused an exponentially rising death toll, with no accurate way to measure the total number of casualties due to the destruction of Gaza's health infrastructure and the ongoing blockade of the entire strip.

Despite the mounting evidence of atrocities, Thune has defended Israel’s actions, claiming that “this was not a war of Israel’s making,” and that Hamas is solely responsible for the current violence. In a March 2024 statement, Thune further justified the bombings of schools, hospitals, and even United Nations buildings in Gaza, parroting Israel’s false claims that Hamas hides beneath civilian infrastructure. These baseless assertions have been debunked, yet Thune continues to defend Israel’s indiscriminate attacks on civilians, which have resulted in the destruction of over half of Gaza’s homes, 85% of school buildings, and 80% of commercial facilities. The blockade has left 65% of Gaza’s road networks destroyed, 65% of cropland decimated, and all universities obliterated. Thune’s stance reveals a callous disregard for the immense suffering of Palestinian civilians, many of whom have been trapped in a war zone with no access to food, water, or medical care.

Thune’s support for Israel extends beyond Gaza and into the West Bank, where Israeli forces and settlers have continued their violent campaign of land grabs and ethnic cleansing. Since October 2023, Israeli aggression in the West Bank has led to the deaths of over 5,700 Palestinians, the destruction of the village of Jenin, and the kidnapping of Palestinian civilians without due process. Yet, during a visit to Israel in October 2023, Thune stated, “If we want to see the entire world, including this region, be a safer, more secure, and more stable place, organizations like Hamas have to be eliminated.” Thune’s rhetoric conveniently ignores the fact that Israel’s actions have done nothing to create stability and have instead escalated violence, displaced thousands, and deepened the suffering of Palestinians. His unwavering support for Israel, funded by AIPAC, makes him directly complicit in the ongoing genocide and the broader occupation of Palestinian land.

Senator John Thune (R-SD)

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