Harris says she ‘will not be silent’ on Gaza suffering while telling Netanyahu to get ceasefire deal done

CNN —

Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to “not be silent” about suffering in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war, saying she expressed her “serious concern” to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday while telling him it is time to lock down a ceasefire deal.

“Israel has a right to defend itself and how it does so matters. What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating,” Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, told reporters in remarks after her meeting with Netanyahu in Washington.

Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza, launched in the wake of the October 7 attacks has triggered a humanitarian crisis, displacing almost all of the Strip’s 2 million population and reduced swathes of the territory to rubble.

US Vice President and Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at West Allis Central High School during her first campaign rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 23, 2024. Harris is in Wisconsin to start her presidential campaign after effectively clinching the Democratic presidential nomination. (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP) (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Related article Harris steps out on Israel as she navigates Biden and Netanyahu

“The images of dead children and desperate hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third or fourth time. 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,” Harris said.

Harris’ comments provided the clearest explanation yet of her views on the conflict as she works to balance the issue that has not only divided the country but caused friction within the Democratic Party. Harris echoed