Key facts
- Abdul El-Sayed apologized for comments made after a March synagogue attack.
- He stated his remarks were misconstrued and not intended to justify the violence.
- The apology was directed at the Michigan Jewish Democratic Caucus.
- The attacker had recently lost family members in an Israeli airstrike.
- Critics accused El-Sayed of justifying the attack with his 'hurt people hurt people' statement.
Michigan Democratic US Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed issued an apology on Saturday to the state’s Jewish Democratic Caucus for comments he made following a synagogue attack in March. El-Sayed expressed regret, stating that his remarks may have been misconstrued and were not intended to justify the violence.
"To anyone who feels like my comments might have been hurtful, I’m really sorry. That was not my intention,” El-Sayed told reporters after addressing the caucus at a party convention in Lansing. He explained that while he intended to provide context for the attack, it was not the appropriate time for such commentary, acknowledging that one should not "trample somebody’s pain."