Pro-Palestinian protesters «have a point,» US President Joe Biden said on Monday, acknowledging for the first time criticism of his stance on Israel.
“Those protesters out in the street, they have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides,” Biden said, during his Democratic National Convention speech in Chicago.
As Biden was speaking pro-Palestinian protesters took to the streets of Chicago.
Biden said he had put forward a proposal a few days ago “that brought us closer to achieving» a ceasefire «than we have been since” the war broke out in Gaza in October least year.
«We will keep working to bring hostages home and end the war in Gaza, and bring peace and security to the Middle East,» he said.
He reiterated his commitment to prevent a wider war in the region and surge humanitarian health and food assistance into Gaza to end the civilian suffering of the Palestinian people.
“Finally, finally, finally deliver a ceasefire and end this war,» he said.
The remarks signal a softening of Biden’s stance months after condemning similar protests on college campuses earlier this year.
In May, at the peak of the student movement, Biden asserted that the protests had not swayed his stance on supporting Israel. «Dissent is necessary in democracy, but it should never lead to disorder,» he said at the peak of student protests over the war in Gaza.
Police had to intervene to clear a number of encampments as students protested Israel’s offensive in Gaza, launched after a Hamas attack on Oct. 7 that killed over 1,200 people.
Israel has killed nearly 40,000 Palestinians in response to the Hamas attack in the last 10 months of war, according to Gaza health authorities.
Since the escalation of the Gaza war, dozens of cities across the US have witnessed protests in support of Palestine, with significant backing from young people.
In Chicago, thousands of protesters gathered outside the United Center, urging Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to reconsider her support for Israel.
The chants of thousands of activists and citizens outside could be heard from inside the sports center on the first day of the Democratic convention.
Harris, who has historically supported the pro-Israel lobby in Washington, has not yet explicitly addressed her stance on the conflict.
At a recent campaign event in Michigan, she responded to pro-Palestinian protesters by saying, “If you want Trump to win, say so.”
The Gaza conflict has become a significant political issue for Democrats, particularly among younger voters. A Siena College/New York Times poll indicates that 45 percent of voters under 30 disapprove of the current administration’s handling of the war.
