‘I will not be silent’

Vice President Kamala Harris said “Israel has a right to defend itself … and how it does so matters.” Harris’ remarks followed a meeting she held with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington Thursday.

“It is time for this war to end and end in a way where Israel is secure, all the hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to freedom, dignity and self determination,” said Harris.

Since Harris launched her campaign on Sunday, the de facto Democratic presidential nominee has been under pressure to further define her position on the Israeli war with Hamas in Gaza, now in its tenth month.

Harris said her conversation with Netanyahu was “frank,” and she pressed him to continue making headway on a multi-stage plan to scale back the warfare in densely populated Gaza, to release hostages and to permit Palestinians in Gaza to resume their daily lives.

“There has been hopeful movement and the talks to secure an agreement on this deal,” she said. “And as I just told Prime Minister Netanyahu, it is time to get this deal done.”

“So to everyone who has been calling for a ceasefire. And to everyone who yearns for peace. I see you and I hear you….Let’s bring the hostages home. And let’s provide much needed relief to the Palestinian people.”

The White House later said that Harris and Netanyahu also discussed the administration’s “work to ensure Israel can defend itself from threats from Iran and Iranian-backed terrorist groups, including Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah, and the Houthis, and the importance of combatting the rise in Antisemitism globally.”

The meeting came amid a polarizing visit to Washington by Netanyahu and the Israeli delegation.

While Netanyahu spoke to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the U.S. Capitol to protest his visit and America’s support for Israel. The protesters vandalized statues and burned American flags, replacing them with Palestinian flags.

“I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews,” Harris said in a statement on the protests earlier Thursday. “Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation.”

“Let us all condemn terrorism and violence,” Harris said after meeting with Netanyahu Thursday. “Let us all do what we can to prevent the suffering of innocent civilians. And let us condemn anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and hate of any kind. And let us work to unite our country.”

Biden and Netanyahu held a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office earlier in the day, after which the two heads of state met with the families of American hostages.

“We feel probably more optimistic than we have since the first round of releases in late November, early December, where a little over 100 of Israel’s hostages were released,” Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is currently being held hostage in Gaza, said.

“We got absolute commitment from the Biden administration and from Prime Minister Netanyahu that they understand the urgency of this moment now, to waste no time, and to complete this deal as it currently stands.”

According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, the number of Palestinians reported killed since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel is more than 39,000. In addition to reported fatalities, roughly 90,000 Palestinians have been reported injured.

More than 1,100 people were killed in Hamas’ brutal surprise attack on Israel Oct. 7, 2023, triggering the Israeli military incursion.

“What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating,” said Harris. “We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering. And I will not be silent.”