Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday honored the victims of the “brutal and sickening” Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel while recognizing the “scale of death and destruction” in Gaza since the raids one year ago.
Ms. Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, said last year’s raids were a terrible reminder of the history of pogroms, prejudice and slaughter the Jewish people have suffered through the ages.
“What Hamas did that day was pure evil — it was brutal and sickening. And it has rekindled a deep fear among the Jewish people not just in Israel, but in the United States and around the world,” Ms. Harris said. “We all must ensure nothing like the horrors of October 7 ever happen again. I will do everything in my power to ensure that the threat Hamas poses is eliminated, that it is never again able to govern Gaza, that it fails in its mission to annihilate Israel, and that the people of Gaza are free from the grip of Hamas.”
Ms. Harris commented on the anniversary ahead of a solemn day of remembrance. She planned to plant a tree of remembrance at the vice presidential residence with her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who is Jewish.
The Hamas raids killed more than 1,200 people, including 46 Americans, and ignited a violent year in the Middle East. The militants are still holding hostages, and thousands of people have been killed during an Israeli military campaign to rout Hamas, sparking pro-Palestinian protests at U.S. college campuses and elsewhere.
President Biden, facing pressure from both sides, has sought a cease-fire to bring the hostages home and pause the Israeli assault on Gaza. But he’s been frustrated in his efforts. Instead, the war is escalating with an exchange of attacks between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
Ms. Harris is walking a fine line as she campaigns for president, careful to acknowledge the suffering of Israelis on Oct. 7 and the death toll in Gaza. Michigan, a key swing state, is home to a large population of Palestinians who are upset over U.S. support for Israel’s military campaign.
“It is far past time for a hostage and cease-fire deal to end the suffering of innocent people,” Ms. Harris said. “And I will always fight for the Palestinian people to be able to realize their right to dignity, freedom, security, and self-determination.”
Likewise, Mr. Biden released a statement memorializing Oct. 7 as the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust and recounting his efforts to release hostages and win a lasting peace.
“We will not stop working to achieve a cease-fire deal in Gaza that brings the hostages home, allows for a surge in humanitarian aid to ease the suffering on the ground, assures Israel’s security, and ends this war,” the president said. “Israelis and Palestinians alike deserve to live in security, dignity, and peace.”
Some Democrats expressed concern that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is making military decisions in a way that’s designed to tilt the U.S. election toward former President Donald Trump, a longtime ally.
Mr. Trump, the Republican nominee, has questioned the Biden-Harris administration’s decision in the Middle East, saying they are courting wider violence.
“I’ve been talking about World War III for a long time, and I don’t want to make predictions because the predictions always come true,” Mr. Trump told Fox News before a recent Michigan rally. “But they are very close to global catastrophe. We have a nonexistent president and a nonexistent vice president who should be in charge. But nobody knows what’s going on.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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