Speaking from the state dining room at the White House,flanked by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken,Biden likened Hamas to the terror group Islamic State. He said the US would deploy experts to help with hostage recovery efforts.
Citing the “stomach churning reports ofbabies being killed” and “women raped,assaulted and paraded as trophies,” he also vowed to continue to support Israel as it prepares for acomplete siege of the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the attack.
US President Joe Biden,center,speaks with Secretary of State Antony Blinken,right,and Vice President Kamala Harris in the State Dining Room of the White House.Credit:AP
“Sadly for the Jewish people it’s not new,” Biden said. “This attack has brought to the surface painful memories and scars left by millennia of antisemitism and genocide against the Jewish people. So in this moment,we must be crystal clear:we stand with Israel.”
During his speech,which came soon after he spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the third time since Saturday’s attack began,the president did not ask Israel to exercise restraint.
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Instead,he said the US would continue to provide the military support it needed to ensure it did not run out of tools to defend itself.
This included surging equipment to replenish the Iron Dome missile defence system,which allows Israel to detect and shoot down incoming projectiles,and repositioning ships and aircraft in the region to act as a deterrent.
Biden also confirmed theAmerican death toll had now risen to 14 - up from 11 on Tuesday and that some US citizens had been taken as hostages.
He had directed his team to share intelligence and deploy additional US government experts to help Israel’s hostage recovery efforts.
Blinken will also travel to Israel this week to show support.
“As president,I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans being held hostage around the world,” Biden said.
Biden’s comments came as Israel continued to pummel Gaza with airstrikes on Tuesday,saying its military had regained control over border towns,while Hamas threatened to kill a hostage every time Israel strikes the strip without warning.
Israeli soldiers take cover as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza strip.Credit:AP
However,back in Washington,the leader has come under growing attack by those who believe he has been too weak on Iran,which is a known backer of Hamas.
In particular,the administration has been criticised over its recentdecision to unfreeze $US6 billion ($9.3 billion) in Iranian funds in exchange for the freedom of five wrongfully detained American citizens.
Supporters of Israel and Palestine gather at the Israeli consulate in New York on Monday.Credit:AP
“Missing from president Biden’s speech is,first,any sense of what America will do to avenge the savage murders of our citizens and,second,the word ‘Iran’,” said Senator Tom Cotton,a Republican and former military officer.
“It is our responsibility,not Israel’s,to avenge those deaths. And the refusal to even warn Iran by name will only embolden the ayatollahs.”
Some are also concerned about how long the goodwill towards Israel will last,despite Biden’s claims of “rock solid” support.
A Gallup poll released in March,before the war began,found that Democrats’ sympathies in the Middle East favoured the Palestinians overIsraelis,49 per cent versus 38 per cent.
Some progressive Democrats,such as congresswoman Cori Bush,have struck a much different tone to Biden,saying in a statement that “violation of human rights do not justify more violations of human rights and a military response will only exacerbate the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis alike”.
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Blinken also deleted a tweet he’d posted on Sunday urging a “ceasefire”,while the State Department’s Office of Palestinian Affairs deleted a tweet urging “all sides to refrain from violence and retaliatory attacks”.
And across the US,authorities are now monitoring domestic threats in connection with the Hamas attack on Israel and security has been ramped up at Jewish centres as protests erupted over the conflict.
But at home and abroad,Israeli-Americans are urging the Biden administration to do more.
“They’re responsible to bring the US citizens back home safe and sound,” said Nehar Neta,the son of missing 66-year-old Adrienne Neta.
“We expect nothing less from the US administration:from president Biden and secretary of state Blinken.”
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