Kamala Harris says she won't support arms embargo on Israel but activists remain hopeful

'Uncommitted' movement has gathered hundreds of thousands of supporters who want change in US policy on Gaza

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris waves during a campaign rally in Michigan. Reuters

Democratic presidential hopeful Kamala Harris has indicated that she does not support an arms embargo on Israel, but pro-Palestinian activists hope she may be more sympathetic and resolved when it comes to bringing about a ceasefire in Gaza.

Leaders of the “uncommitted” campaign spoke with Ms Harris on Wednesday to discuss their demands for a change in policy on the war.

Layla Elabed, cofounder of the group that encouraged voters to mark "uncommitted" on their primary ballots to protest against US policy on Gaza, said she had spoken briefly with Ms Harris and her new running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, before a rally in Detroit, Michigan.

During the exchange, Ms Elabed asked for a meeting to discuss their demands and the impact of the war on Arab Americans in the critical swing state, many of whom have lost loved ones in Gaza.

"She indicated that yes, she would meet with us," Ms Elabed told The National. "We have felt VP Harris to be more sympathetic and empathetic.

"But Palestinian children can't eat empathy, and they can't eat words, and we need an arms embargo.

"We need a real common-sense policy change that will save lives. It is the moral thing to do."

On Thursday, Phil Gordon, Ms Harris’s national security adviser, said she would "continue to work to protect civilians in Gaza and to uphold international humanitarian law".

But Mr Gordon said that she does not support an arms embargo on Israel.

"The Vice President has been clear: she will always ensure Israel is able to defend itself against Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups," Mr Gordon wrote on X.

President Joe Biden's administration says it is holding back a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs amid concerns over their use by the Israeli military against civilians.

But last month, shipments of 500-pound bombs resumed, the White House said.

This year, hundreds of thousands of Democratic voters cast uncommitted ballots in the primaries in a nationwide show of outrage over the Biden administration's failure to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza or place conditions on military aid to Israel.

In Michigan, a key swing state that is home to the largest concentration of Arab Americans, more than 100,000 Democratic voters cast uncommitted ballots, while about 20 per cent of Democrats in Mr Walz’s state of Minnesota joined the movement.

Observers say the uncommitted movement could sway the election, with polls showing Ms Harris is headed for a tight race against Republican former president Donald Trump.

Mr Biden, after enduring intense criticism over his near unequivocal support for Israel throughout the war, abandoned his bid for re-election late last month and endorsed Ms Harris.

Ms Harris's choice of Mr Walz as her running mate was met with cautious optimism by some progressives and Arab Americans.

A former teacher, army veteran and congressman, he has a moderate record on Israel.

Mr Walz met Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a trip in 2009 and addressed the powerful pro-Israel lobby group Aipac the next year.

But he has also referred to uncommitted voters as "civically engaged” and called the situation in Gaza "intolerable".

There are growing global concerns that Israel's prolonged military campaign in Gaza – which has killed nearly 40,000 Palestinians – will spill into a full-scale regional war.

Iran intensified vows of revenge this week after the killings of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and the political leader of Hamas in Tehran.

Ms Harris has in recent weeks criticised Israel's conduct in the war in Gaza and denounced the worsening humanitarian crisis there.

Despite these signals of support, Ms Harris snapped at a group of pro-Palestinian protesters who interrupted her speech in Detroit with chants of: "Kamala, Kamala, you can’t hide. We won’t vote for genocide."

"You know what? If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that," she said in a video that has gone viral on social media. "Otherwise, I'm speaking."

Amid a lack of clarity over Ms Harris's and Mr Trump's policies on the Middle East, Arab-American community leaders say many voters are undecided.

"No decision rendered yet. We've been actively engaged. We're open. Our doors are open, our windows are open," Imad Hamad, director of the American Human Rights Council, an Arab-American organisation based in Michigan, told The National.

"Are we asking too much when we say we want a lasting ceasefire, and end to this genocide, open the path for genuine peace efforts?

"Is it too much when we say we want to stop or end US military aid to Israel?"