Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign has rejected the claim that she believes the IDF is committing genocide in Gaza.
“That is not the view of the Biden administration or the Vice President,” a Harris campaign official told the Jerusalem Post.
The Harris campaign spoke up after an exchange between Harris, the Democratic Presidential contender, and a pro-Palestinian heckler wearing kaffiyeh at a weekend event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, one of the swing states in the 2024 race for the White House.
She had been in the middle of telling students, “I am so invested in y’all in every way, to make sure,” when the heckler interrupted her, stating, “And in genocide, right, billions of dollars in genocide.”
Harris shot back, “You know what? I respect your right to speak. I am speaking right now. I know what you are speaking of. I want the ceasefire, a hostage deal, and the war to end. I respect your right to speak, but I am speaking right now.
“You aren’t speaking about genocide,” the protestor said. “What about the genocide?” He continued to push her on genocide even as a security guard ushered him out of the room.
Harris then told the audience, “What he is talking about, it’s real. That is not the subject I came to discuss today, but it's real. And I respect his voice.”
Her statement that what he is talking about is real had sparked speculation that she agreed with the protestor's assessment that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza.
Supports Israel's right to defend
Her campaign has since rejected claims that her words were intended to indicate agreement with the protestor's statements.
Harris's statements on Gaza have been in line with those of the Biden administration, which has taken Israel to task over humanitarian issues in Gaza but has otherwise backed Israel’s right to self-defense.
At an October 16 campaign stop in Detroit, Michigan, which is another swing state and which also has a large Palestinian American community, she was asked if she believed she could lose the election due to her views on Gaza.
“Well, it is undeniable that it is something that everyone is aware of what is happening there,” she said.She reflected in her answer on events that happened during the Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed and another 251 seized as hostages., of which there are 97 still held in the enclave along with four others.
She also spoke about the subsequent IDF military campaign in Gaza over the last year to oust Hamas in Gaza, including the IDF assassination last week of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
Hamas has asserted that over 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza war. Israel has said over 17,000 fatalities in Gaza were terrorists.
In Detroit, Harris said, ”I speak publicly all the time about the fact that there are so many tragic stories coming from Gaza. And of course, the first in this phase of everything that has happened, the first most tragic story, is October 7, and what happened that day and then happened since,” Harris said.
“I think what's critically important as we look at this moment is one acknowledging the tragedy of what has happened in Gaza in terms of the extraordinary number of innocent Palestinians who have been killed, and taking that seriously and speaking the truth about it,” she said.
That is “in addition, of course, to what I said about what happened on October 7, in terms of 1,200 innocent Israelis being slaughtered, women being horribly raped, and then fast forwarding to today with the killing of Sinwar,” Harris stated.
“This creates an opening that I believe we must take full advantage of to dedicate ourselves to ending this war and bringing the hostages home.
As it relates to the issues in the Middle East and, in particular, in that region, it has never been easy. But that doesn't mean we give up. Okay? It is always going to be difficult. It does not mean we give up, we can't give up,” she stressed.