California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) met at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center with Israeli victims of the Palestinian terror group Hamas on Friday, including a Californian from Los Angeles who had been shot and survived.
Yesterday, I listened to the grief and terror in a mother’s voice as she spoke about her son — a Californian right now being held hostage in Gaza — whose arm was blown off by a terrorist’s grenade.⁰
No one deserves to live in the kind of fear and terror that the Israeli people… pic.twitter.com/hFKbVYPmW8— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) October 21, 2023
Newsom issued a statement:
As I reflect back on the extraordinary people I just met today in Israel, I am reminded of the deep connections between my home state and this country. A country that has faced many dark times before, and certainly is in one now.
But amid this present struggle against terrorists are stories of unimaginable heroism — and unspeakable tragedy.
“I listened to the grief and terror in a mother’s voice as she spoke about her son — a Californian right now being held hostage in Gaza — whose arm was blown off by a terrorist’s grenade.
I hugged a girl — another Californian, born in Los Angeles — who was shot in the leg by Hamas and left for dead, in truly horrific conditions.
I grieved with families in mourning, I met with young soldiers fresh from bomb shelters and battlefields, and I sat with leaders who bear the responsibility of response to it all.
Despite the horror, what I saw and heard from the people of Israel was a profound sense of resilience. A commitment to community and common purpose, especially in these most difficult of times.
That’s the Israeli spirit. And it’s also the California spirit. We are bound by more than those who live one place or another, or who have family here or there. My heart is heavy for all innocent people under the crushing pressure of loss and grief, no matter which side of fence they quite literally find themselves on.
So as I prepare to leave, I share these words: may the memory of those who perished be a blessing to the whole world.
Newsom left Friday to continue on a trip to China.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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