Colorado Socialist Candidate Links 9/11, 10/7 Attacks to US Foreign Policy, Calls Them 'Inevitable'

Melat Kiros, a Democratic Socialist candidate in Colorado, recently asserted that the September 11 and October 7 terror attacks were "inevitable" outcomes of U.S. and Israeli military and foreign policy actions in the Middle East.

During an interview with Colorado’s Next 9News on June 22, Kiros was questioned about remarks she had previously made. The discussion stemmed from prior comments made by Kiros during an appearance on the online program of Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, where she described the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel as "an inevitable consequence of apartheid, of occupation, decades of occupation."

Kiros clarified that she was not suggesting Israel "had it coming" but stressed the importance of understanding the underlying "conditions" that lead to such acts of violence.

"It’s about understanding the conditions in which violence and war happen, right?" Kiros stated. "Israel is a country that has been accused of apartheid and occupation for decades now and has been able to resist any kind of change despite all of the frustration on the world stage that people have had for the conditions that Palestinians have been living in."

Connecting 9/11 to Foreign Policy

9News journalist Kyle Clark subsequently asked Kiros if she applied the same logic to the September 11 terror attacks, considering U.S. foreign policy at the time.

"Inevitable in the sense that we destabilized a lot of the Middle East, which led people to believe that another act of violence was the only response," Kiros responded. "And again, just like I said before, our responsibility is to get rid of those conditions that lead to violence in the first place."

Prior Controversy and Political Stance

Before launching her current campaign, Kiros was dismissed from her position at the Sidley Austin law firm in 2023. This dismissal occurred after she authored an open letter criticizing various law firms, including her former employer, for their calls to action against antisemitism on college campuses.

In her letter, Kiros argued:

"By chilling future lawyers’ employment prospects for criticism of the Israeli government’s actions and its legitimacy, you are complicit in Israel’s weaponization of anti-Semitism against legitimate concerns for the right of self-determination and the livelihood of the Palestinian people. By conflating 'calls for the elimination of the Israeli state' with anti-Semitism, you delegitimize any solution that forces Israel to reckon with its colonial role in Palestine, including one-state solutions called for by Palestinians and Israelis alike — one state, under the historic Palestine, where all citizens are equal under the rule of law, regardless of religion or ethnicity."

Kiros is among a growing number of candidates endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, who are actively seeking to challenge and replace incumbent Democratic politicians in upcoming elections.