Daughter of LA Times Owner Reprimands Kamala Harris on Gaza: ‘Genocide’

In the days that followed Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong blocked the newspaper’s editorial staff’s plan to endorse vice president Kamala HarrisHis daughter — who said she was part of the decision — accused the Biden-Harris administration of supporting what she described as Israel’s “genocide” of Palestinians as part of the reason.

The United States is a strong ally of Israel and has provided billions in military aid and diplomatic support to the country over the years. with recent reports showing that a record $17.9 billion in aid has been received since the start of the war in Gaza last year.

Next Hamasattack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which left approximately 1,200 dead and 250 others taken hostage, the White House has supported Israel’s military operations.

Moreover, the Biden-Harris administration has done just that deployed thousands of additional US troops, along with warships and fighter jets, to the region in recent weeks. The Pentagon has also deployed a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, along with approximately 100 U.S. personnel, to the Middle Eastern country.

Earlier this week, the State Secretary said Anthony Blinken announced additional US aid of $135 million to the Palestinians. During his trip to the region, Blinken urged Israel to reach a ceasefire deal with Gaza that would end the war and return the remaining hostages.

In a series of posts about X, previously TweetLate Thursday evening local time, 31-year-old Nika Soon-Shiong shed light on her family’s decision to block the newspaper’s endorsement of Harris, the Democratic candidate and a California resident, ahead of November’s presidential election by writing: “For me, genocide is the line in the sand.”

Newsweek reached out to Harris for comment via email on Saturday.

In another post she added: “For my family, Apartheid is not a vague concept. My father was an emergency surgeon at Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto. He treated students shot by police during the Soweto uprisings – where 176 people died in protest against the brutal system of racial segregation,” she wrote.

The Soweto Uprising was a series of protests led by black schoolchildren in South Africa during apartheid in 1976, after the Afrikaans language was imposed on students. Protesters were confronted with police violence. Her father, Patrick Soon-Shiong, was born in South Africa in 1952 and is an accomplished surgeon and medical inventor.

Apartheid in South Africa lasted about fifty years. Last year, South Africa filed a case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), alleging that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinians and has violated the Geneva Convention. Several other countries have joined in supporting South Africa’s cause.

Israel has strongly denied that it is committing genocide in Gaza and says its operations are necessary defensive measure against Hamas.

Nika Soon-Shiong’s

She included a screenshot of one New York Times headline from June 1964, and wrote: ‘Many American news organizations and politicians were complicit. The headline reads: ‘The official case for apartheid; the South African Foreign Minister outlines the history and philosophy behind his country’s policy of ‘separate development’ for whites and non-whites. ”

Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have said that Israel is pursuing an apartheid policy against the Palestinians. Israel has repeatedly denied the claims.

Nika Soon-Shiong’s next

There have been repeated Israeli attacks on hospitals and shelters in the region throughout the year. On Thursday, Israel struck a school where displaced people were sheltering, killing 17 people, almost all of them women and children, according to the Associated Press. That same day, 42 people were injured in an attack on the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing 13 children and three women.

Nika Soon-Shiong wrote: “Apartheid, illegal settlements and genocide in Palestine are also profitable – supported by US arms dealers who are witnessing record profits. Shares of Northrop Grumman are up 28%, General Dynamics up 37% and Lockheed Martin up 55%. “

Lockheed Martin produces the THAAD system. In addition, pro-Palestinian and anti-war demonstrations have taken place outside the facilities of all three US arms manufacturers in response to Israel’s war in Gaza.

She clarified that not endorsing Harris is “not a vote in favor.” Donald Trump. This is a refusal to ENDORSE a candidate who is overseeing a war on children. I am proud of the LA Times’ decision, just as I am confident that there are no such things as children of darkness. There is no such thing as human animals.”

Palestinians have faced repeated dehumanization throughout the war, with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant calling for a full siege of Gaza, declaring shortly afterwards Hamas‘ attack: “We are fighting human animals.”

In one New York Times In an article published on Saturday, Nika Soon-Shiong sent a statement saying: “As a citizen of a country that openly finances genocide, and as a family that has lived through South African apartheid, the approval was an opportunity to challenge the justifications for to reject the widespread attacks on journalists. and the ongoing war on children.”

Three editors have resigned over the paper’s non-approval, and more than 200 journalists signed an open letter to management on October 25 calling for transparency on the issue.

Days after the Los Angeles Times’ decision, The Washington Post announced it would not support Harris or Trump in the presidential race, which also led to a flood of responses and a series of subscription cancellations.