(Headline USA) Vice President Kamala Harris over the weekend publicly called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza, marking what could be a significant shift in the White House’s policy toward Israel, CNN reported.
Describing the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas as a “humanitarian catastrophe,” Harris urged the two parties to reach a deal that would give other countries the opportunity to provide the region with additional aid.
“People in Gaza are starving, conditions inhumane, and our common humanity compels us to act,” Harris told a crowd Sunday in Selma, Alabama. “Given the immense scale of suffering in Gaza, there must be an immediate ceasefire for at least the next six weeks, which is what is currently on the table.”
Israel on Sunday afternoon rebuffed so-called negotiations for a ceasefire that were taking place in Cairo after Hamas refused to meet one of its most basic conditions, for a list of hostages that the terror organization continued to hold captive.
Nonetheless, Harris claimed the deal would “get the hostages out and get a significant amount of aid in,” without elaborating as to how the plan would secure the hostages, who have been languishing in Hamas hideaways for nearly five months since the Oct. 7 ambush that left more than 1,200 innocent Israelis dead.
Israel’s capitulation “would allow us to build something more enduring to ensure Israel is secure and to respect the rights of the Palestinian people,” Harris said.
The Biden administration has thus far avoided calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, which would require Israel to completely stop its offensive against Hamas.
And while Harris has acknowledged the threat Hamas poses to Israel, she has been much more critical of Israel’s response than President Joe Biden or other members of the administration—at least publicly.
“No excuses,” she said this weekend, before filling in as a Hamas proxy by issuing a series of ultimatums to Israel:
“They must open new border crossings. They must not impose any unnecessary restrictions on the delivery. They must ensure humanitarian personnel, sites, and convoys are not targeted. They must work to restore basic services and promote order in Gaza, so more water and fuel can reach those in need,” Harris decreed.
Biden has also become more openly critical of Israel in recent weeks, likely due, in part, to pressure from Muslim voters, who delivered a rebuke last week in Michigan’s Democratic primary by voting “uncommitted,” despite the fact that Biden faces no serious competition for the nomination.
The same group—including outspoken pro-Hamas Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich.—has warned Biden they will not support him in November’s general election unless he calls for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and stops supporting Israel.
“You want my vote? You cannot kill my people in my name. As simple as that,” Michigan leftist Terry Ahwal told the New York Times last week. “Everything Israel wants, they get.”
