In front of an excitable crowd chanting “USA, USA, USA”, Harris deployed familiar language: “I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself, and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself. Because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organisation called Hamas caused on October 7, including unspeakable sexual violence and the massacre of young people at a music festival.”

The references to sexual violence and the festival massacre have long been deployed as a way to legitimise Israel’s war on the whole of Gaza, which has continued for nearly a year now.

Meanwhile, Palestinians are raped in Israeli prisons, and Israeli politicians openly say this is justified. Harris, like most US leaders, had nothing to say about it.