President Joe Biden on Tuesday will condemn Hamas and stress U.S. support for Israel as it reels from the killing of more than 1,000 people, including at least 11 Americans, from a surprise attack launched by the Palestinian militant group.
Biden is set to speak at 1 p.m. ET (1700 GMT) from the White House. He will express concern about the potential that some Americans are being held hostage by Hamas, an Iranian-backed Islamist group, a senior White House official said.
Biden will speak after holding his third phone call in four days with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He will outline in his remarks the U.S. military assistance being sent to help Israel in its fight, the official said.
A second White House official said Biden will strongly condemn Hamas’ attacks and provide an overview of the actions the United States is taking with allies around the world to support Israel.
The White House on Monday said it expected to fulfill additional security requests from Israel as quickly as possible.
Biden and Netanyahu, despite differences on the way forward in the Middle East, have been thrust into a wartime partnership following the multipronged attack by Hamas militants from Gaza into Israel.
Biden will also offer support for American Jews and say they should be allowed to worship in peace in the United States. Biden said last month that antisemitism in the United States had risen to record levels.
Israel's embassy in Washington said the death toll from Hamas' weekend attacks had surpassed 1,000, dwarfing all modern Islamist attacks on the West since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
