A group founded by former New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo released its first TV ad condemning Hamas for its attack on Oct. 7, and slamming demonstrators who have protested Israel’s war in Gaza.
The ad released by Never Again, NOW! takes aim at protesters that have sympathized with the terror group in what has become one of the most divisive topics in this election season.
At one point, anti-Israel agitators took over multiple college campuses in the months since Hamas killed and kidnapped people in Israeli communities and clashed with authorities and subjected Jewish students and faculty to threats.
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“Do they really know who they’re protesting for?” a narrator says in the one-minute commercial, which will air across New York state in the coming week after the July 4 holiday. “If you stand with Hamas, you stand with terror.”
Cuomo, a Democrat who resigned in 2021 after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment, founded the group, a nonprofit social welfare organization that provides education and promotes understanding about the relationship between Israel and the United States, in March 2023.
Cuomo denied any wrongdoing. The group said it is focused on debunking lies about Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip.
“We are at a crucial moment in history where antisemitism is spreading unchecked and support for Israel in this country is waning,” Cuomo said. “There are protestors in the streets that are not merely Pro-Palestinian — but embrace Hamas, a brutal terrorist organization.”
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Palestinian flags are seen around the encampment on the campus of Columbia University in New York City on April 23, 2024. Tensions flared between pro-Palestinian student protesters and school administrators at several US universities on April 22, as in-person classes were canceled and demonstrators arrested. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)
“This ad does two things. One, tells the truth about Hamas and what happened on Oct. 7. Two: It reminds people that Israel is the victim,” he added.
It described Hamas and its links to terrorism and the persecution of women and LGBTQ people, beheadings, as well as violence against children and infants.
“Hamas ran Gaza for 15 years, siphoning relief money to build an underground war machine,” the ad states. “Hamas is not a resistance movement with a cause. It’s a genocidal terrorist organization dedicated to killing all Jews and more.”
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Cuomo has long been a supporter of Israel. In November, he called for the deployment of National Guard troops to protect Jewish centers and synagogues across New York State.
Never Again, NOW! plans to deploy speakers to address Israel and antisemitism in lectures and in the media in the fall.
