The White House on Friday is pushing back against reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is upset with Vice President Kamala Harris over her remarks on the war that he believes could jeopardize a hostage and ceasefire deal – with one aide telling Fox News, “I don’t know what they’re talking about.”
The reported diplomatic flare-up comes after Netanyahu both met with President Biden and Harris in Washington on Thursday, ahead of his meeting today with former President Trump at Mar-a-Lago. An Israeli official told Axios that Netanyahu was unhappy with Harris mentioning civilian deaths in Gaza and the “dire humanitarian situation there.”
The official added that, in their view, Netanyahu was irked with Harris speaking about a hostage and ceasefire deal as a way to end the war outright, when Israel wants to be able to resume fighting after one is implemented.
“When our enemies see the U.S. and Israel are aligned it increases the chances for a hostage deal and decreases the chances for a regional escalation,” the Israeli official told Axios. “When there is such daylight it pushes the deal further away and brings a regional escalation closer. We hope that Harris’ public criticism of Israel won’t give Hamas the impression that there is daylight between the U.S. and Israel and as a result make it harder to get a deal.”
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Vice President Kamala Harris, right, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appear before a meeting at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington, on Thursday, July 25. (AP/Julia Nikhinson)
One Israeli official also said to Axios that “Harris’ statement after the meeting was much more critical than what she told Netanyahu in the meeting.”
But an aide for Harris told Fox News this morning that “I don’t know what they’re talking about.
“President Biden and Vice President Harris delivered the same message in their private meetings to Prime Minister Netanyahu: it’s time to get the ceasefire and hostage deal done. And this is what the Vice President said publicly as well,” the aide said.
Activists cheer as they burn flags and a puppet of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a protest near the U.S. Capitol on July 24 in Washington, D.C. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“The public comments tracked with her previous comments on the conflict. She started with underscoring rock-solid support for Israel and then expressed concern about civilian causalities and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, as she always does,” the aide added. “The meeting between Prime Minister Netanyahu and Vice President Harris was serious and collegial.”
In her remarks Thursday, Harris said she told Netanyahu that she “will always ensure that Israel is able to defend itself, including from Iran and Iran-backed militias such as Hamas and Hezbollah.”
“I also expressed with the Prime Minister my serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza, including the death of far too many innocent civilians. And I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there,” she continued.
“It is time for this war to end, and end in a way where Israel is secure, all the hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to freedom, dignity and self-determination,” Harris also said, adding that “thanks to the leadership of our president, Joe Biden, there is a deal on the table for a ceasefire and a hostage deal” and “as I just told Prime Minister Netanyahu, it is time to get this deal done.”
Former Trump national security aide John Ullyot told ‘Fox & Friends First’ on Friday that Harris’ remarks have shown she has “taken over from Biden.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks following her meeting with Netanyahu on Thursday. (AP/Julia Nikhinson)
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“It is clear that what happened with Kamala Harris is that number one, she has her hand now firmly on the tiller. There is no question – she was the only one who made a [on-camera] statement,” Ullyot said. “Bibi met with Biden and he also met with Harris, but Harris is the only one who walks out, she got the flags behind her. She is definitely pushing her agenda now and she has taken over from Biden. But look, the policies are the same.”
Fox News’ Sarah Tobianski contributed to this report.