By Zainab Nasreen Muhammad
In the recent presidential debate, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump addressed their approaches to the Israeli-Palestinian “conflict” – which is now simply a genocide of Palestinians. Harris has sought to position herself as a defender of democratic values and human rights, attempting to balance support for Israel with acknowledgement of Palestinian aspirations. However, her rhetoric often lacks any urgency to shift the situation for the better, it is rather an effort to appear balanced when she has clearly taken her side – the wrong side of Israel.
Trump, on the other hand, maintained a more confident position, restating his previous commitment to a pro-Israel agenda without regard for any Palestinian rights. In debates, he has often downplayed humanitarian crises and focused on security narratives that have always sidelined Palestinian voices. Both Harris and Trump prioritise Israeli interests over Palestinian rights.
Recently, the Ministry of Health in Gaza published a 649-page document with the name, age, and gender of every Palestinian killed by Israel and its allies. The people on the first 14 pages of the document had not even lived long enough to experience their first birthday.
Many people are missing and unaccounted for. Women have been giving birth without proper care. Surgeries have been done without anaesthesia. Nearly all of Gaza has been shelled and flattened. The horrors are beyond the rest of the world’s knowledge or imagination.
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While political figures often portray themselves as champions of human rights and equality, the reality of US foreign policy reveals a fact: regardless of who occupies the Oval Office – man, woman, black, brown, white, democrat, republican – the support for Israel’s erasure of Palestinians will continue.
Despite their different politics, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have demonstrated an alignment when it comes to US policy toward Israel and Palestine. Under Trump’s administration, there was a “Peace to Prosperity” plan which favoured Israel as usual. The only difference is that, while Kamala puts on a show by making people believe that she is trying to negotiate a ceasefire, Trump is more grounded in his pro-Israel, pro-genocide philosophy.
The Biden-Harris administration has not gone against Trump’s Peace to Prosperity plan; it has continued to provide unwavering support in the form of arms, military personnel, and funding for Israel while purposely ignoring humanitarian concerns regarding the Palestinian population.
Their statements often start with the phrase “Israel has the right to defend itself” which we have heard countless times from the supporters of Israel’s genocide. It is important to know that this is simply manipulative rhetoric.
I do not agree that Israel has the right to defend itself because it has nothing to defend itself from. Hamas and the Palestinian army are like ants compared to the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) who have been at the forefront of committing heinous atrocities and war crimes towards Palestinians. Israel can only defend itself from others with more or equal power and military might – noat a weak army and Palestinians who have been displaced and have lived in open-air prisons for all of their lives.
Palestinians have the right to self-determination, and the right to defend themselves against the evil of Israel and its allies.
The argument that a woman in a position of power might lead to a more compassionate or progressive approach to the Palestinian struggle is something we all want to believe. Yet, in the case of Kamala Harris, it is simply not true. Her presence as Vice President of the US has not translated into meaningful changes for Palestinians, rather she has defended Israel’s genocide of Palestinians many times.
Harris, like Trump, has failed to articulate a vision that challenges this narrative. Their alignment with Israeli interests at the expense of Palestinian lives remains unchanged.
The notion that having a woman in office would inherently lead to a more just and equitable approach, is a fallacy that must be dismantled. Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, despite their differences, share a troubling complicity in perpetuating the status quo that continues to inflict suffering on Palestinians.
Americans and others around the world who are calling for a ceasefire and the establishment of a free and sovereign Palestinian State are unfortunately stuck between a rock and a hard place. Both Trump and Harris will allow Israel to do as it pleases with the Palestinian population.
We all have a responsibility to make public life uncomfortable for leaders like Trump and Harris who are complicit in the suffering and mass murder of Palestinians.
Let it be clear that the actions of Hamas on October 7, 2023, are not a justification for the brutality that has been unleashed on Palestinians since 1948 – and more so ever since last year. Long live the Palestinian resistance; one day, we will see a free Palestine.
Zainab Muhammad is a Mass Communication student, she wrote from Abuja
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