Kamala Harris Calls For The End Of The War In Gaza And Israel Cannot Do Occupancy

Kamala Harris. (Twitter/@Kamalaharris)

JAKARTA - United States presidential candidate from the Democratic Party Kamala Harris called for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, insisting Israel should not retake the Palestinian enclave after the nearly year-long conflict ended.

Speaking in Philadelphia to the National Association of Black Journalists, he called for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian Hamas militants, a two-state solution, and Middle East stability in a way that does not empower Iran.

"We have made it very clear that this agreement needs to be made in the best interests of all parties in the region," the incumbent US Vice President said.

It is known that the latest conflict in Gaza broke out after a Palestinian militant group led by Hamas attacked Israel's southern region, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and holding about 250 people hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel then carried out a blockade, airstrikes and ground operations in retaliation. At least 41,252 people have been killed and 95,497 people have been injured since the conflict broke out on October 7, 2023, Gaza's health ministry said.

In the 2020 presidential election, black voters supported presidential candidate Joe Biden with 92 percent of the vote compared to 8 percent of Republican Donald Trump, then in office and now against Harris, according to the Pew Research Center.

Most black voters, 63 percent, plan to support Harris, compared to 13 percent for Trump, according to a NAACP survey released this month.

However, some black voters are starting to lose confidence in the Democratic Party. More than a quarter of young black men say they will support Trump in this election, according to a NAACP poll.

"Black men are like other voters," Harris said.

"You have to get their votes," he added.

Both Harris and Trump have been working to win the hearts of black voters, whose support may be decisive in the tightly contested general elections on November 5, especially in some of the battlefield states such as Pennsylvania and Georgia.