Vice President Kamala Harris said she would "always stand up for Israel's right to defend itself" but that the "suffering in Gaza" must end as she accepted the Democratic presidential nomination Thursday.
In closing out the Democratic National Convention, Harris touched on the issue that hadn't often been on the stage, even while pro-Palestinian protests throughout the week outside the venue had served as a reminder of its presence in today's politics. The issue had also been something of a question mark in Harris' campaign, with some thinking she'd continue the Biden administration's general support for Israel or lean toward increasing humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
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But toward the end of her speech, Harris made clear that she'd attempt to address both concerns: Continuing to support Israel's defense while ensuring the devastation in Gaza does not continue. She noted that she and President Biden were already working "around the clock" to get hostage and ceasefire deals done.
"Let me be clear: I will always stand up for Israel's right to defend itself, and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7 — including unspeakable sexual violence and the massacre of young people at a music festival," Harris said.
"At the same time, what has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating. So many innocent lives lost — desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety over and over again, the scale of suffering is heartbreaking. President Biden and I are working to end this war, such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination."
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Though Harris had largely been in lockstep with President Biden's policies on Israel and Gaza, in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month, she pressed harder on humanitarian concerns in Gaza and the deaths of civilians that were a result of Israel's defense tactics.
"We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies," she said at the time.
Thousands of pro-Palestinian protestors rallied to Chicago throughout the week to voice their displeasure with Democratic leaders who have supported U.S. aid to Israel. Thursday, they shared their critique of the Harris campaign not putting a Palestinian American speaker on the convention stage.
"The Democratic party has made its position known with regard to this genocide, but that's why we're out here," Faayani Aboma Mijana, a spokesperson for March on DNC, told Scripps News. "We're out here to force them to do what we want. We're mobilizing people. We're building a movement to pressure them to end U.S. aid to Israel. That's our focus."
