As the radical Islamist group Hamas terrorizes Israel, launching rockets on Jerusalem Day, President Joe Biden did not directly condemn the group Wednesday after a reporter asked him about the ensuing Middle East conflict.
A reporter asked Biden if he is “concerned” about the conflict. Biden said “Israel has a right to defend itself when you have thousands of rockets flying into your territory” but did not go further to call out Hamas as the one doing the terrorizing.
“My national security staff and defense staff has been in constant contact with their counterparts in the Middle East, not just with the Israelis, but also with everyone from the Egyptians, to the Saudis, to the Emirates, etc.,” said Biden. “And I had a conversation with Bibi Netanyahu not too long ago; I’ll be putting out a statement very shortly on that. My expectation and hope is that this will be closing down sooner than later.”
Former President Donald Trump issued a statement Tuesday, calling out Biden for “weakness” and his “lack of support for Israel.”
“When I was in office we were known as the Peace Presidency, because Israel’s adversaries knew that the United States stood strongly with Israel and there would be swift retribution if Israel was attacked,” Trump said. “Under Biden, the world is getting more violent and more unstable because Biden’s weakness and lack of support for Israel is leading to new attacks on our allies.”
Members of “The Squad” have been vocal in opposition to Israel’s sovereignty. Rep. Ilan Omar, D-Minn., tweeted that “Many will tell you Israel has a right to defend itself, to safety and security, but are silent on whether Palestinians have those rights too. Until we can defend the rights of Palestinians just as we do Israelis, we have no leg to stand on when it comes to justice or peace.”
Many will tell you Israel has a right to defend itself, to safety and security, but are silent on whether Palestinians have those rights too.
Until we can defend the rights of Palestinians just as we do Israelis, we have no leg to stand on when it comes to justice or peace.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) May 10, 2021
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., urged Israel “to end the occupation” and blamed the free state for defending itself against terrorism.
“@MoveOn urging .@POTUS to address the root causes of violence and force Israel to end the occupation, ease the blockade & put an immediate stop to forcing Palestinians out of their homes. This is what solidarity looks like,” Tlaib said.
.@MoveOn urging @POTUS to address the root causes of violence and force Israel to end the occupation, ease the blockade & put an immediate stop to forcing Palestinians out of their homes.
This is what solidarity looks like. https://t.co/tLgTApj68H
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) May 12, 2021
Hamas fired more than 1,100 rockets into Tel Aviv, Israel, to which Israel retaliated and killed two leaders in the group. While The Gaza Health Ministry, a designated terrorist group by the U.S. Department of State, claims more than 50 Palestinians were murdered by Israel and more than 300 were wounded, the numbers are unverified. The credibility of a terrorist group’s statistics ought to be duly investigated.
Many of the reported fatalities are individuals considered designated terrorists. Times of Israel reports that some Palestinians who were killed were hit by rockets Hamas fired.
Raw Aerial Footage:
This is the moment that the IDF & Israel Security Agency carried out a targeted strike against Islamic Jihad commander, Samah Abed al-Mamluk & other senior members of his unit.
They were among those responsible for hundreds of rockets fired at Israelis. pic.twitter.com/3DLj2UVdCm
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 11, 2021
