Kamala Harris Endangers Ceasefire Deal

Kamala Harris has caused concerns with a statement she made after a meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday. Israeli officials told reporters that the meeting with President Joe Biden was more constructive than the one with the Vice President. But the meeting with Harris wasn’t confrontational, and one of her aides even described it as "serious and collegial."

So, Netanyahu and his team were surprised by the tone of Harris’ later statement, saying it was much more critical than her tone in the meeting.

They were frustrated about her severe description of food insecurity in Gaza, given that Netanyahu had explained how many steps Israel was taking to provide humanitarian assistance to civilians there.

And they were surprised that the Vice President made it seem as if the ceasefire deal on offer would include a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza in Phase 2 - something that has not been agreed.

So, there are now serious concerns that Harris may have reduced the chances of an agreement with Hamas, as she appears to be following a tougher line than Joe Biden - one which is significantly different from Netanyahu’s.

One Israeli official expressed their concern by saying:

"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."