Former President Barack Obama is facing criticism over remarks about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during an interview in Belfast, Northern Ireland, while on a speaking tour in Britain.

Obama said that Jewish efforts to find refuge were understandable after the persecution Jews faced in Europe, but added that “it is undeniable that they took land from people and acted excessively.”

He called on Israel to find a “just, ethical and moral way” to defend itself rather than “walling itself off,” arguing that the government’s reliance on military force without making concessions is costing Israel its moral standing. Obama also urged Palestinians to abandon violent strategies, saying Hamas’s October 7 attack proved futile. He listed easing suffering, ending the violence, halting expansion in the West Bank and rebuilding Gaza as immediate goals.

The remarks drew sharp criticism from pro-Israel voices. The Daily Wire and HonestReporting accused Obama of historical revisionism, arguing that he portrayed Israel’s founding solely as a response to the Holocaust while ignoring the Jewish people’s thousands-of-years connection to the land. Critics also said he omitted the extensive legal land purchases made by Jews in Eretz Yisroel before the establishment of the state.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)