Kamala Harris sidesteps question on whether Netanyahu is US's "close ally"

WASHINGTON DC: US Vice President Kamala Harris sidestepped a question on whether Benjamin Netanyahu can be considered a "close ally" of the US, Al Jazeera reported.

In an excerpt of an interview with CBS News's 60 Minutes, which was released on Sunday, the VP was asked on what the US was doing to stop Israel's attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, amid criticisms of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's actions despite calls for de-escalation by the US, Al Jazeera reported.

Harris, who is a Democratic candidate in the November Presidential election, said that they were pressurizing Israel and Arabs in the Middle East to reach to a ceasefire agreement.

"The work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel," Al Jazeera quoted Harris as saying.

On being asked if the United States had a "real, close ally" in Netanyahu, Harris said, "I think, with all due respect, the better question is, do we have an important alliance between the American people and the Israeli people? And the answer to that question is 'yes'," Al Jazeera reported.

The US provides Israel with at least USD 3.8bn in military aid annually, and Biden has approved USD 14bn in additional assistance to the US ally since Israel's war on the Gaza Strip began in October 7 last year, Al Jazeera reported.

Although the US claims it supports de-escalation, the leaders say that they "support Israel's right to defend itself", Al Jazeera reported.

"Obviously attacks, targeted attacks on civilians, could not be justified, but Israel does have the right to go after terrorists," Al Jazeera quoted US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller as saying.

"They need to take actions to mitigate civilian harm. They're required to do that under international humanitarian law, in Lebanon as they are anywhere else," Miller added.