Walz says Gaza demonstrators are protesting for ‘all the right reasons’ while condemning Hamas

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice presidential candidate Tim Walz said Thursday that those protesting American support for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza are doing so for “all the right reasons,” as the Democratic ticket looks to balance its support for Israel with the humanitarian plight of civilians in the war-torn enclave.

Walz’ comments came in an interview with a local Michigan public radio station — a state with a large Muslim American population that is also a potentially pivotal swing state in this November’s election. His comments appeared to mark tonal shift, though not a policy one, from the steadfast support for Israel that Vice President Kamala Harris espoused at the Democratic National Convention last month.

Walz said the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that touched off the war, was “a horrific act of violence against the people of Israel. They certainly have the right to defend themselves.” But, he also said that, “we can’t allow what’s happened in Gaza to happen. The Palestinian people have every right to life and liberty themselves.”

During the interview, Walz was also asked how a Harris administration might handle the nearly 11-month Israel-Hamas conflict and whether she would break with President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel while working to broker a ceasefire and a deal to release hostages held by Hamas.

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Walz made no mention of the six hostages, including American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who were executed last week in Gaza by Hamas as Israeli forces drew near. Nor did he mention the protests that involve violence and vandalism and are frequently directed at Jewish Americans.

Walz has, in other settings, spoken about the hostages, including in a social media post earlier this week where he wrote: “The anguish of losing a child is something no family should have to endure. ... Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization — and we condemn their continued atrocities against both Americans and Israelis in the strongest possible terms.”

Harris, who has spoken more passionately of the plight of Palestinians civilians in Gaza than Biden, has pledged to continue longstanding support for Israel. In a statement after the hostages’ bodies were identified, Harris said that the “threat Hamas poses to the people of Israel—and American citizens in Israel—must be eliminated” and that “Hamas cannot control Gaza.”

Speaking at a vigil for the hostages at his synagogue in Washington on Tuesday, Harris’ husband Doug Emhoff said, “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Hersh and his parents, or about the five others and their families.” He added: “This is hard. I feel raw. I’m gutted.”

Although the vice president has appeared more forceful in speaking about the plight of civilians in Gaza, she and Biden are in step on his efforts to arm Israel and bring about a hostage deal and ceasefire. Harris and Biden met earlier this week in the White House Situation Room with the U.S. hostage deal negotiating team.

Harris’ campaign, meanwhile, has stepped up its outreach to Arab and Muslim American leaders in Michigan, aiming to make up ground with a community that had grown exasperated with Biden after they felt months of outreach had not yielded many results. Some have expressed a willingness to listen while others have had initial conversations with Harris’ team.

Harris previously said that it was important to remember “the war in Gaza is not a binary issue. However, too often the conversation is binary, when the reality is anything but.”

Hostage families have accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of blocking a deal and potentially sacrificing their loved ones to hold a strip along Gaza’s border with Egypt, called the Philadelphi corridor. Hundreds of thousands of Israelis this week took to the streets and called for a deal, saying time is running out to bring hostages home alive.

Biden said this week they are still negotiating.