Vice President Kamala Harris was grilled by a reporter over the recent escalation in the Gaza war following the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
The Democratic nominee fielded questions from reporters at a press briefing in Detroit on Saturday after a campaign event. Since Sinwar’s death earlier this week, Harris has praised Israel for removing the infamous leader and called for peace in the region.
Since announcing her candidacy, Harris has faced criticism from the pro-Palestine wing of the party over the Biden administration’s policy towards Israel. A reporter asked Harris if the issue of Gaza will cost her the election.
REPORTER: There’s a lot of churn and turmoil within the Arab-American and Muslim communities here in Michigan. Do you think you could lose the election because of Gaza and what. You know, overnight there were more strikes. 32 more people were killed in Gaza, some in hospitals. You know, how risky is it that you could lose the election?
HARRIS: Well, it is undeniable that it is something that everyone is aware of. What is happening there. 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 7th. And what happened that day and then what has happened since. And 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 truth about that. In addition, of course, to what I said about what happened on October 7th, in terms of 1200 innocent Israelis being slaughtered, women being horribly raped, and then fast forwarding to today with the killing of Sinwar. 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.
REPORTER: That is not working so far.
HARRIS: You know what? Listen, 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.
Watch the clip above via CNN.
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