Will Kamala Harris’s Gaza Cease-Fire Call Quell Democratic Protests?

With Joe Biden and his reelection campaign facing mounting pressure from key Democratic constituencies, Kamala Harris on Sunday issued the administration’s most vigorous call for an immediate, temporary cease-fire in Gaza. Speaking in Selma, Alabama, the vice president said the Israeli government must “do more to significantly increase the flow of aid” into Gaza, where—according to the United Nations—hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are “one step” away from famine, following massive levels of displacement amid a months-long Israeli blockade, invasion, and bombing campaign. “What we are seeing every day in Gaza is devastating,” said Harris, describing the situation as a “humanitarian catastrophe.” 

“[Israel] must not impose any unnecessary restrictions on the delivery of aid,” she continued. “They must ensure humanitarian personnel, sites, and convoys are not targeted. And they must work to restore basic services and promote order in Gaza so more food, water, and fuel can reach those in need.”

While some of the comments were at odds with Israel’s policy of resource strangulation, the call for a cease-fire is in line with a deal that Israel is considering that would see Israeli hostages freed in exchange for a six-week armistice. “Hamas claims it wants a cease-fire. Well, there is a deal on the table,“ Harris said. “Hamas needs to agree to that deal. Let’s get a cease-fire.”

But even the prospective temporary cease-fire remains uncertain. On Sunday, representatives from Hamas were in Cairo to participate in cease-fire talks, but their Israeli counterparts boycotted the meeting after Hamas reportedly declined to provide a full accounting of the hostages in Gaza who are still alive.

During her speech, Harris also referred to a brutal incident last week during which numerous Gazans were shot by Israeli troops while desperately attempting to retrieve food from the few aid trucks that have trickled into northern Gaza recently. But Harris did not blame Israel for the slaughter. Instead, without identifying a culprit, she noted that the crowds “were met with gunfire and chaos.” 

She concluded her remarks on the war by assuring Israel that the White House remains on its side. “President Joe Biden and I are unwavering in our commitment to Israel’s security,” she added. “Hamas cannot control Gaza, and the threat Hamas poses to the people of Israel must be eliminated.”

Though Harris’s tone was sharp toward Israel, she still stopped short of the permanent cease-fire that many in the Democratic Party’s base have been demanding. Last week, more than 100,000 Michigan voters participating in the Democratic primary cast “uncommitted” votes to protest Biden. The ballot protest was organized by anti-war organizers as a means to register their discontent with the current administration and persuade Biden to pare back his support for Israel.

A similar campaign is being organized in Minnesota, a particularly progressive state that will hold its Democratic primary on Tuesday along with more than a dozen other states. “We don’t want any more empty claims,” Asma Mohammed, one of the organizers behind Vote Uncommitted MN, told The Guardian. “Another win for us is that this will embolden some of our members of Congress and Senate to take action, because there are a lot of them who have not been on the right side of this either, who have taken votes that have angered the community and have really been hurting their chances at reelection.”

After Minnesota, Washington, which will hold its primary next week, could be the next state to host a notable ballot protest against Biden. There, the “uncommitted” campaign has been endorsed by the Washington United Food and Commercial Workers Union, one of the largest labor bodies in the state, and by the state chapter of the American Muslim Advancement Council.

In what could be construed as an attempt to quell these and other protests, the Biden administration has begun using airdrops to deliver food to Gaza, with the first delivery of about 38,000 meals landing on Saturday. While certainly beneficial for those on the receiving end, limited food shipments can only do so much for a starved and enclosed population of 2.3 million, which is likely why Harris demanded that Israel cease its practice of blocking aid trucks from entering Gaza.