Kamala Harris says she is not worried about Trump’s talks with Netanyahu By Reuters
Written by Jeff Mason and Kanishka Singh
PHILADELPHIA – The Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, said on Sunday that she is not interested in the talks between the former President Donald Trump and the Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, and she reiterated where she stands on the Middle East conflict.
Democratic presidential nominee Harris faces Republican Trump in a tight race in the Nov. 5 election.
“No,” Harris said when asked if the talks between Trump and Netanyahu would undermine what the current US administration is trying to achieve.
Trump and Netanyahu have spoken several times in recent weeks. They had a close relationship during Trump’s presidency as the US moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, much to the delight of the Israelis and anger of the Palestinians.
“I believe that it is very important that we as the United States of America play an active role in encouraging people, that this war ends, that we release the hostages but also that there is a real commitment among nations to a 2-state solution and the ‘next day’ (in Gaza),” Harris told reporters on Sunday.
President Joe Biden supported Israel during the wars in Gaza and Lebanon after the October 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which sparked the latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Harris and Trump are committed to maintaining US support for its allies.
In the October 7, 2023, attack, approximately 1,200 were killed and approximately 250 were captured, according to Israeli statistics. Israel’s subsequent offensive on Hamas-ruled Gaza has killed around 43,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry. It displaced almost everyone from Gaza, created a famine and led to accusations of genocide at the World Court, which Israel denies.
Israel’s separate campaign in Lebanon has killed more than 2,500 people and left more than a million homes. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, who have exchanged fire with Israel last year.
