Tim Scott: Foreign Students in US Protesting Against Israel ‘Should be Sent Back to Their Country’

Republican presidential candidate South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott says that foreign students in the United States who are protesting against Israel should be "sent back to their country," saying that they are "celebrating a terrorist organization."

"The foreign national students on visas who are protesting against our ally Israel should be sent back to their country. It’s devastating to see people in our country celebrating a terrorist organization for the annihilation of our Jewish brothers and sisters," Scott wrote in a post to X on Tuesday.

Since the Hamas attack on the Gaza Strip last week, protests across the U.S. have broken out, some in support of Israel, and some in support of Palestine. The attack on Israel, however, was not carried out by the Palestinian government, but Hamas, which is a U.S. designated terrorist group.

While the U.S. has emphasized unwavering support for Israel, it has sparked controversy among Palestinians and Palestinian Americans who have been advocating for an end to the Israeli occupation of Gaza for years.

Scott's comments are in a similar nature to those expressed by political opponent and Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis who said over the weekend that the U.S. should not accept any Palestinian refugees because "they are all antisemitic."

"Hamas wants to wipe Israel off the map, but they won’t stop there. They also want to eliminate all Jews on the planet and destroy Western democracy," Scott continued. "Anyone who stands up in support of terrorism and the inhumane murder of Jews should have their visa revoked. We have to stop indoctrinating students with the mindset that America is evil and that Western democracies are somehow oppressors."