PALESTINIAN - Senator Bernie Sanders says the United States must be "pro-Palestinian" as much as "pro-Israeli" and described the Israeli government as "right-wing" and "racist".
Speaking during a televised town hall meeting in Nevada on Tuesday, the Democratic frontrunner for the US presidency said: "To be for the Israeli people and to be for peace in the Middle East does not mean that we have to support right-wing, racist governments that currently exist in Israel".
Sanders also spoke about the humanitarian crisis in the besieged Gaza Strip, where the youth unemployment rate is about 70 percent.
"Take a look at what's going on in Gaza right now. You got youth unemployment, 70 percent, you know people can't even leave the area," he said.
"What American foreign policy has got to be about in the Middle East is bringing the Israelis, bringing the Palestinians together under the banner of justice."
Sanders said: "It cannot just simply be that we're just pro-Israel and we ignore the needs of the Palestinian people." (Aljazeera)