Tomi Lahren Rips Kamala Harris Over Gaza Remark

Vice President Kamala Harris has been criticized by conservative political commentator Tomi Lahren over her comments on Gaza amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

For almost two months, the region has been embroiled in some of its deadliest fighting in years. On October 7, Hamas killed 1,200 people in a surprise attack on southern Israel. Israel has subsequently killed more than 15,200 people in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials cited by the Associated Press.

Israel has secured the release of 110 of the approximately 240 hostages abducted by Hamas, according to an Israeli government spokesperson. But the release of Israeli and foreign hostages stopped abruptly last week after negotiations between Israel and Hamas broke down.

It's unclear how many of the remaining hostages are in southern Gaza. Israeli officials said they believed that some of them were moved by Hamas or other militant groups from the north to the south after the war began in October.

Israel's decision to continue the war after the ceasefire collapsed has led the United States and other nations to warn Israel to limit civilian casualties. Even before the ceasefire ended, the U.S. began warning Israeli officials to proceed with caution in the south of Gaza, according to a senior White House official who spoke on background to discuss private diplomatic conversations.

Harris weighed in on the issue during a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi on the sidelines of an international climate conference in Dubai on Saturday. Harris said the U.S. opposed any "forced relocation" of Gazans as a result of the fighting.

"The Vice President reiterated that under no circumstances will the United States permit the forced relocation of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank, the besiegement of Gaza, or the redrawing of the borders of Gaza," the White House said in a statement.

Later on Saturday, video footage was shared on X, formerly Twitter, of Harris being questioned about a suggestion by some Israeli officials that the Gaza land mass could be reduced to accommodate a security "buffer zone" between the territory and Israel.

In the clip, a person off camera is heard asking Harris if she has "any thoughts on the buffer zone," as another informs the vice president that she "didn't answer her question."

"What is the question exactly?" Harris asked, and was told in response: "Israel has been suggesting creating a buffer zone in Gaza. What is the U.S. view on that?"

"We have not weighed in on that," Harris responded in the seconds-long clip, which has been viewed more than 300,000 times.

Sharing her thoughts on the video, Lahren wrote of Harris on the social media platform: "She has no flipping clue what you're talking about."

In her statement over the weekend, Harris said that U.S. would not permit or support "the redrawing of the borders of Gaza."

During her brief press conference in Dubai, Harris spoke about the ultimate goal for the region and Israel.

"When this conflict ends, Hamas cannot control Gaza and Israel must be secure," she said. "Palestinians need a hopeful political horizon, economic opportunity and freedom. And the region more broadly must be integrated and prosperous. And we must work toward that."

Answering questions about a potential buffer zone surrounding Gaza, Mark Regev, a senior adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said during a media briefing on Saturday that the country was not "taking territory" from Gaza.

"In a post-Hamas reality, Israel will maintain for the foreseeable future overall security control. That will be a necessary prerequisite," Regev said. "You won't have a situation in the future when you can have Hamas terrorists directly on the border."

"This is not Israel taking territory from Gaza," he added. "On the contrary, that is creating security zones, where you have a special situation on the ground which limits the ability of people to enter Israel to kill our people."

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released a map of Gaza that divided the territory into hundreds of numbered areas. An IDF official said the map was intended to give civilians—in southern Gaza and elsewhere in the tiny coastal strip home to 2.2 million people—detailed information about where to go to seek safety in the event of a larger military campaign by Israel.

But humanitarian groups have warned that civilians in southern Gaza are running out of safe places to go. Many residents of northern Gaza who were displaced earlier in the war would likely have to move again if fighting intensifies in the south. Some have already moved to an area near Rafah in southern Gaza that Israel has said will not be targeted by the military.

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