What do people in Gaza, West Bank and Lebanon think about the US election?

2 weeks ago 7

Israel’s war on Gaza has grown increasingly unpopular in the United States, especially among young Americans.

Still, both the Democrat and Republican leadership have insisted they fully support Israel, even as they offer some calls for an end to the conflict, which has spread to Lebanon.

In the US, many Arab and Muslim Americans, as well as other pro-Palestinian progressives, hold the administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris – who is the Democratic candidate for the presidency – responsible for not doing more to stop the bloodshed. Many say they cannot vote for the candidate in the election, even if Republican candidate Donald Trump has firmly been in the pro-Israel camp.

That has led to a fierce debate over what the best course of action should be for those who want Israel to be forced to stop its military attacks on the Palestinians and Lebanese.

But what about in the places most affected by the policy of whoever the American people will choose to be their next president on November 5? Al Jazeera asked several people in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and Lebanon. Here’s what they had to say.

Gaza

Ammar Joudeh, from Jabalia

“If Trump wins, disaster has befallen us. Trump’s presidency was disastrous for the Palestinian cause. He recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and normalisation with Arab countries increased.

“If Trump wins, we’ll be displaced to the Sinai Peninsula [in Egypt]. Israel has already enacted much of Trump’s plan to displace us from northern Gaza. If Trump takes office again, he’ll finish the plan.

“More than a year has passed, and we’re still stuck – no work, no water, no safe place, no food. Our sadness is deep.”

Tahani Arafat, from Gaza City

“There’s no room for optimism, since current discussions are only about ending the Lebanon conflict, as if we don’t exist. But I expect Trump could end the war or find a quick solution.

“The conflict began under Biden and has raged for eight months with no intervention. If the US had truly pressed to stop it, it would have ended before. Instead, we endure war, annihilation in plain view, and Israel receives unwavering military support.

“The Democrats talk of peace but it’s empty. Biden’s term has been the worst for us; maybe Trump would be more decisive.

“No American president will stand by us.”

Imad al-Dayah, from Shati refugee camp

“Our biggest hope here in Gaza is for this war to end. To the American people, I would say: support an immediate end to this war, regardless of who wins the election. Trump’s term was a disaster for us. I hope he never returns, as he’ll only cater to Israel’s demands.

“It’s tragic that halting genocide and ending a yearlong war in Gaza depends on political shifts. To the world, our suffering is invisible, but each passing day is filled with blood, tears, and funerals – a truth everyone should remember.”

Occupied West Bank

Khaled Omran, from el-Bireh

“On a personal level, of course, there is no change, but on the Palestinian level, we believe that Trump’s victory will be more bloody.

“If I had the right to vote, I would not vote for anyone. The choice here is between bad and worse. Whatever the result, the next president will support Israel.”

Wafaa Abdel Rahman, from Ramallah

“As a Palestinian, the two options are worse than each other. It seems to us as Palestinians like choosing between the devil and Satan.

“If Trump wins, I believe that the war will be resolved in Israel’s favour quickly and more violently. Trump policy is clear and known to us as Palestinians. However, Harris will complete what her successor started and adopt the same position as her party, and thus we will remain in a long-term war without a resolution. In both cases, the result is death for Gaza, but in the second case, it will be a slow and more painful death.

“Sooner or later, there will be negotiations to stop the war on Gaza, even if it takes a long time, but [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu will be more powerful and able to impose his conditions if Trump wins, and he knows full well that he has the green light to eliminate Gaza.

“As my family lives in the Gaza Strip and I work in the Gaza Strip, I can confirm that the Gazans are interested in the election results, as if they are clinging to a straw and the possibility of salvation after these elections.”

Lebanon

Joy Slim, from Beirut

“I think these days, we as Arabs – as Lebanese or Palestinians – are always choosing between bad and worse. That was always the case when it came to Western policy [on the Middle East] and. specifically, American policy.

“Personally, before the war, I was very critical of Donald Trump and what he represents – his right-wing supporters and what they represent in the US and Europe. But after this year, after what Biden’s administration has done with all the unconditional support to Israel, I’m thinking that maybe it’s better if Trump wins.

“Yes, sure, he may ban abortion – which for me, personally, as a woman, it bothers me – but he still represents a hope of stopping the war [in Gaza and Lebanon]. He might withdraw the US’s full support for Israel and I think he thinks more as a businessman and he wants to save [the US’s] money. I think that is enough for me now.”

Sharif Khailee, from Beirut

“If you speak to different people in Lebanon, people will give you different views. Some will tell you that Harris will continue the war and some say that Trump might try to end it.

“What I personally believe is that American foreign policy will never change, and no matter what happens, they will support Israel. Trump may do it more financially and Harris militarily, but in the end, American foreign policy won’t change.

“It’s because of their relationship. In the end, you can say Israel is a little mini USA in the Middle East and [the US] won’t get rid of it. It’s their only way to be in the Middle East, without actually having themselves here.”

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