This month, a UN committee declared the ongoing violence by Israeli forces against the Palestinian people constituted a genocide. However, South Dakota’s representative in the U.S. House isn’t so sure.
In general, South Dakota’s congressional delegation has supported Israel.
Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Dusty Johnson said not everyone agrees with the United Nations recent assessment.
“Clearly, what’s going on in Gaza is very unfortunate. Any war, in history, has seen innocents and non-combatants killed," Johnson said. "It’s one of the reasons we work so hard to avoid war. There have been some analyses that have reached a very different conclusion with the United Nations. Part of the issue, why there’s little trust in the United Nations, is they’ve been so resolutely anti-Israel for 50 years.”
While not all international bodies agree the conflict constitutes genocide, others agree. The International Court of Justice ruled in 2024 Palestinians have a “plausible” right to protection from genocide, and Amnesty International describes genocide as quote “the only reasonable conclusion” after the events.
Johnson does concede Israel deserves some degree of scrutiny.
“That doesn’t mean Isreal can’t do better, Israel can absolutely do better in how they’re prosecuting this war," Johnson said. "Understanding Hamas though is a clear, existential threat to Israel.”
The International Criminal Court has also issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders on war crime and crimes against humanity charge.