Former Israeli premier says Israel associated with ‘genocide’ among US students

Israel has become associated with "genocide" among American students, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said.

"For the first time since the establishment of the State of Israel, among the American public, Israel has become a negative brand," Bennett said in a recent interview.

"If you ask an American student, 'Israel — what comes to mind?' They say genocide. That's the situation," Bennett said.

Drawing a comparison with how countries are commonly associated with symbols, he added: "You say Italy — 'pasta, spaghetti.' You say Israel — 'baby killers.'"

Bennett rejected that perception, saying: "Obviously, that isn't true, and it isn't fair, but that is the situation."

He also blamed part of the shift in public opinion on what he described as Qatar's influence in the US.

"Part of this is because we allowed Qatar to operate and build influence for 25 years," Bennett said.

The interview comes as Israel faces growing international criticism over its war on Gaza and the worsening humanitarian situation in the enclave.

Last October, a US-backed ceasefire agreement went into effect in the Gaza Strip.

Since then, however, repeated Israeli truce violations have killed more than 1,300 Palestinians across the enclave and have left more than 4,300 others injured.

Hundreds of bodies of slain Palestinians, meanwhile, have been pulled from under the rubble of destroyed infrastructure.

According to Gaza's Health Ministry, more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began its genocidal war on the coastal strip in October 2023.

Additionally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been wanted since 2024 by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.