NJ officials face criticism for trip to Israel during war

☑️ New Jersey legislators are part of a group visiting Israel along the Gaza border

☑️ Several groups called it a "propaganda trip"

☑️ Assemblyman Paul Kanitra said he paid his own way

A group of Republican officials from New Jersey are facing criticism for visiting Israel while the country continues to fight Hamas in Gaza.

Assemblymen Paul Kanitra, R-Ocean, Michael Inganamort, R-Morris, Greg Myhre, R-Ocean, and Middletown Mayor Tony Perry left Saturday for the three-day trip sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ. The trip was announced on Friday in a statement from the Republican Assembly press office.

According to the federation website, the two dozen people on the trip also include "school superintendents, heads of school, and community leaders" who are not named.

“This is a unique opportunity to connect with families devastated by the brutal Hamas attacks on Israel, meet with local officials to discuss the war as it stretches beyond 100 days, and experience the Israeli relief efforts and the resilience of the kibbutzniks,” the Republicans said in a joint statement. “To be able to gain this type of perspective is an honor and privilege.”

The group on Monday morning did not respond to New Jersey 101.5's inquiry about funding for the trip.

Only hearing one side of the story?

The trip was criticized by groups and people sympathetic to the Palestinian cause.

Sadaf Jaffer, a former Democratic assemblyman, said “it is wrong for New Jersey legislators to go on a trip sponsored by the Israeli government as bombs are dropping & killing 100 Palestinian children a day.”

The groups Jewish Voice for Peace of Northern New Jersey, Jewish Voice for Peace of Central New Jersey, and If Not Now NJ issued a joint statement on Jan. 9 addressed to the legislators their opposition to the trip.

"We ask you to consider that this trip will not be a genuine fact-finding mission, but rather a trip designed to expose you to an entirely one-sided view of the situation in an effort to try to whitewash Israel’s current actions in Gaza."

They urged the group to not take what it called a “propaganda trip” and to instead stay home and hold “listening sessions” with their respective constituents and join them in backing a cease-fire.

Kanitra: Critics are uninformed

Kanitra said opponents of the trip do not have all the facts and that he is paying for his entire trip out of his own pocket. The newly elected assemblyman said his previous trips to over 100 countries show his ability to assess a volatile situation objectively.

“The real question that should be asked is why are these groups so scared of us going to the areas that were attacked and seeing the situation for ourselves,” Kanitra said. "Why are they so scared about what both Arab and Jewish Israelis are going to tell us when we interact with them?"

The delegation will also drop off homemade cards created by children in Kanitra's district for students at a school in Israel where Arab and Jewish Israelis study together.