JERUSALEM (dpa-AFX) - U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it is time to end the war in Gaza.
In her White House meeting with the Israeli leader, Harris expressed concern regarding civilian casualties and discussed the need to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
She also expressed her concern about actions that undermine stability and security in the West Bank, such as extremist settler violence and settlement expansion by Israel.
Netanyahu met Harris after holding talks with President Joe Biden, but the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee spoke in a tougher tone than Biden did in what she described as 'frank and constructive' talks.
'Israel has a right to defend itself and how it does so matters. What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating,' she told reporters after the meeting.
'The images of dead children and desperate hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third or fourth time. We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering and I will not be silent,' she added.
Harris and Netanyahu discussed developments in Gaza and the ongoing negotiations on the ceasefire and hostage release. The Vice President echoed President Biden in expressing the need to close the remaining gaps, finalize the deal as soon as possible, bring the hostages home, and reach a durable end to the war in Gaza, the White House said in a readout of the meeting. . 'The Vice President condemned Hamas as a brutal terrorist organization as well as individuals associating with Hamas, noting that pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and must not be tolerated.'
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