U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) is in Israel. He reports that he was jogging in the Old City on Saturday when he received an urgent call from his Chief of Staff to return to the hotel as Hamas initiated its attacks.
As seen and heard below, Booker said there were “thousands of rockets being launched” and when he reached the hotel he “joined others in the bomb shelter” including children, the elderly, families and “many Americans.”
I was in Israel when the horrific attacks carried out by Hamas started on Saturday. My team and I are now safe, but like many we are shaken, angered, and heartbroken by the hundreds killed, the thousands injured, those taken hostage, and all who are directly affected by these… pic.twitter.com/E4BgEZxSTC
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) October 8, 2023
Note: In 2018, Booker, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, urged his colleagues to oppose Senator Rand Paul (R-KY)’s amendment to the U.S. Department of State’s Operations Authorization and Embassy Security Act, which “would halt all U.S. foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority (P.A.) until the P.A. renounces violence, purges terrorists from its ranks, and recognizes the nation of Israel.” The amendment did not pass with a vote of 5-14.
Booker wrote from Israel: “After this experience, more than ever, I am committed to working with my colleagues in the Senate to continue supporting Israel’s security and ensuring stability in the region — and I hope one day soon, a long-term and just peace in the region.”
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