Leading pro-Israel House candidate says 'no defense' for World Central Kitchen deaths

NEW YORK — New York Democratic House candidate George Latimer’s staunch support of Israel isn’t without its limits — especially as the Israel-Hamas war hits its six-month mark and an Israeli airstrike killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza on Monday.

“It’s a horrific incident, and there’s no defense for that,” Latimer, who is challenging Rep. Jamaal Bowman , said in an interview.

Unlike President Joe Biden, he did not go so far as to say he was “outraged” by the deaths or say Israel must do more to protect civilians. But like Biden, Latimer wants answers from Israel’s investigation.

“How that came to pass, who gave the direction to do something like that, if it’s purposeful or not, you’ve got to know,” he said, adding, “But I think Israel understands that.”

Latimer’s responses to POLITICO’s questions Wednesday in the Bronx are reflective of a broader shift among the Democratic defenders of Israel who have recently hardened their tones on its government and military.

The Westchester County executive is mounting a primary challenge against Bowman, a vocal critic of Israel , in one of the country’s highest-profile tests of the war’s political fallout. Latimer is backed by the influential AIPAC, the Jewish Democratic Council of America and most recently, the Democratic Majority for Israel PAC .

He visited Israel in a show of solidarity in November, but also called for a temporary cease-fire in early March , saying it would bring hostages of Hamas home and get humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Bowman seeks a permanent cease-fire. And his endorsers include Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , Ilhan Omar and other members of the Squad who have repeatedly condemned U.S. and Israeli policies leading to a mounting Palestinian death toll that has surpassed 30,000.

A Bowman campaign spokesperson referred to a video statement in which the House member speaks with anguish about aid workers and civilians being targets of military attacks. The World Central Kitchen is “doing life-saving work, and the IDF bombs them. When will enough be enough?” Bowman writes in another post .

An AIPAC spokesperson pointed to the group’s statement offering its condolences to the World Central Kitchen community. The end of its response had focused attention back on “Hamas’ despicable attack on October 7 and the terror group’s refusal to surrender and free the hostages.”

Latimer appeared to do the same Wednesday. (He spoke to POLITICO in Co-op City after accepting former Gov. David Paterson’s endorsement.)

“You try to avoid getting into wars for that reason,” he said of the slain aid workers before an apparent reference to Hamas. “You try to make sure that you don’t start provocative action that actually triggers all these things.”

A version of this story first appeared in Thursday’s New York Playbook. Subscribe here .