‘She can earn our support’: Philly pro-Palestine activists urge Harris to support Israel arms embargo

What questions do you have about the 2024 elections? What major issues do you want candidates to address? Let us know.

More than a thousand protesters marched outside of Philadelphia City Hall on Sunday calling for a U.S. arms embargo against Israel ahead of the Democratic National Convention.

Rallies took place across the country as part of the Not Another Bomb campaign, which calls on Vice President Kamala Harris to oppose providing arms to the Israeli government in its war against Hamas. The war has claimed the lives of more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

The demonstration comes less than a week after the U.S. approved a $20 billion arms sale to Israel. The sale includes more than 50 F-15 fighter jets, advanced missiles and explosives, however the contract will take years to fulfill and the earliest deliveries aren’t expected until at least 2026.

Sam Kuttab, a Palestinian American, lost two family members in the war. He said politicians need to remember “we are citizens” and “our vote will count.”

“I think the politicians are stuck in thinking that they have to stand with Israel no matter what, otherwise they won’t get support,” Kuttab said. “What they need to realize is there is support for them if they are standing on the point of justice.”

Campaigns across Pennsylvania have been asking voters to not support Harris’ presidential bid until the Biden administration secures a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, or Harris publicly commits to an arms embargo on Israel if elected president.

“We’re saying to our president-to-be, hopefully Harris, ‘Please, do not forget,’” Kuttab said. “This war has to stop, and more important, the occupation has to stop. We can’t have this going on anymore. Enough is enough.”

Elliot Beck attended in support of IfNotNow, a progressive Jewish organization calling to “end U.S. support for Israel’s apartheid system.” He agreed the selling of weapons needs to stop.

“Seeing the horrific images and videos coming out of Gaza … and the real fear that Israelis have that they’re going to be going into a larger regional war,” Beck said. “We here in the U.S. can stop that. We can just stop sending bombs and there will have to be a negotiated ceasefire.”

Beck said the rally wasn’t in opposition to Harris’ bid for president, instead saying, “We’re just calling on Harris to do what the people want.”

“She can earn our support that way,” Beck said. “No one here wants to see Trump elected again … We’re here to offer Harris the best advice to win.”

During a meeting last month with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Harris said she held an “unwavering commitment to Israel” and “will not be silent” about the humanitarian toll in Gaza.

Egypt, Qatar and the U.S. are acting as mediators during ceasefire talks. However, the New York Times reported that Netanyahu has been inflexible in recent talks, and Hamas spokesman Suhail al-Hindi told NPR the group will not take part.

WHYY News reached out to the Harris campaign team for a statement on Sunday’s protest:

“The Vice President believes making your voice heard and participating in our democracy is fundamental to who we are as Americans,” a spokesperson from the Harris-Walz campaign team said. “Vice President Harris supports the deals currently on the table for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and for the release of hostages. She will continue to meet with leaders from Palestinian, Muslim, Israeli and Jewish communities, as she has throughout her vice presidency.”

Some Philadelphia religious leaders stood in solidarity with those in attendance Sunday. Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart, the former Philadelphia director of Faith-Based and Interfaith Affairs, spoke in support of Christians for a Free Palestine. She thanked those in attendance for coming out and commended them for giving up “comfort and safety” for “the sake of freedom.”

“You’ve probably given up belonging — belonging in many spaces and many conversations and many relationships.” Washington-Leapheart said. “By your commitment to holding this nation accountable, a nation that often mocks and ignores and abuses protesters and descenders, even when what we need the most is protesters and dissenters.”

The war began Oct. 7 after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, including the Supernova festival, killing roughly 1,200 people and taking an estimated 250 hostages to Gaza. The Associated Press reports 111 of the Israeli captives have not been released, including the bodies of 39. The hostages include 15 women and two children under the age of 5.

Frequent demonstrations have been held across Philadelphia and the country since the war began, including an encampment at the University of Pennsylvania that was broken up after two weeks and a subsequent storming of Fisher-Bennett Hall.