Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was caught off guard over public comments Vice President Kamala Harris made about his government killing “far too many” civilians in the Gaza Strip, according to a report.
“Harris’ statement after the meeting was much more critical than what she told Netanyahu in the meeting,” one Israeli official told Axios.
Harris met with the Israeli leader after President Biden welcomed him to the Oval Office on Thursday, where the two world leaders also met with the families of eight US hostages being held in Gaza.
“To everyone who has been calling for a ceasefire, and to everyone who yearns for peace, I see you and I hear you,” Harris said after Netanyahu left the White House.
“What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating — the images of dead children and desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third or fourth time,” she added 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.”
Israeli officials fear Harris’ comments not only ticked off Netanyahu but the timing of her publicly criticizing the nation could disrupt hostage negotiations deals with Hamas.
“When our enemies see the US and Israel are aligned it increases the chances for a hostage deal and decreases the chances for a regional escalation,” the Israeli official shared.
“When there is such daylight it pushes the deal further away and brings a regional escalation closer. We hope that Harris’ public criticism of Israel won’t give Hamas the impression that there is daylight between the US and Israel and as a result make it harder to get a deal.”
Netanyahu and Biden met for 3 hours to discuss the Gaza hostages and ceasefire deal earlier in the day.
The officials “stressed” that the meeting between Netanyahu and Harris was not “tense or difficult,” but his meeting with Biden was more productive in chipping away at any possible deals.
About 40 minutes after the meeting, the Democratic nominee hopeful tore into the government for mass civilian casualties and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Here’s the latest on Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign:
“I also expressed with the prime minister my serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza, including the death of far too many innocent civilians. And I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there with over 2 million people facing high levels of food insecurity and half a million people facing catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity,” Harris said.
Harris also condemned Hamas in her historic remarks.
“On October 7, Hamas triggered this war when it massacred 1,200 innocent people, including 44 Americans. Hamas has committed horrific acts of sexual violence and took 250 hostages,” she said.
Harris added, “There are American citizens who remain captive in Gaza: Sagui Dekel-Chen, Hersch Goldberg-Polin, Edan Alexander. Keith Seigel, Omer Neutra,” and that “President Biden and I are working every day to bring them home.”
She also pledged “unwavering” support for the Jewish state’s right to exist.
“I told [Netanyahu] that I will always ensure that Israel is able to defend itself including from Iran and Iran-backed militias, such as Hamas and Hezbollah. From when I was a young girl, collecting funds to plant trees for Israel, to my time in the United States Senate and now at the White House, I’ve had an unwavering commitment to the existence of the State of Israel, to its security and to the people of Israel.”
