Harris vows to ‘always give Israel the ability to defend itself,’ says Gaza war ‘must end’

US Vice President Kamala Harris is asked about her remarks from months ago that “Israel has a right to defend itself, but it matters how,” with one of the moderators asking she would secure a hostage-ceasefire deal.

“Let’s understand how we got here. On October 7, Hamas, a terrorist organization, slaughtered 1,200 Israelis, many of them young people who who were simply attending a concert where women horribly raped and so absolutely… Israel has a right to defend itself, we would,” she says. “And how it does so matters, because it is also true that far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed, children, mothers. What we know is that this war must end, it must end immediately and the way it will end is we need a ceasefire deal and we need the hostages out. So we will continue to work around the clock on that.”

Harris then says “we must chart a course for a two-solution,” which she says must ensure security for Israelis and “in equal measure” for Palestinians.

“The one thing I will assure you always: I will always give Israel the ability to defend itself, in particular as it relates to Iran and any threat that Iran and its proxies pose to Israel. But we must have a two-state solution, where we can rebuild Gaza, where the Palestinians have security, self-determination and the dignity they so rightly deserve,” she adds.