After President Joe Biden — who has undermined Israel’s war against Hamas by slow-walking military aid and warning Israel not to enter territories where Hamas strongholds existed — responded to Hamas’ brutal point-blank execution of six Israeli hostages by criticizing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for not making enough concessions, Netanyahu fired back.
After news of the executions was reported, Biden was asked by a reporter, “Do you think it’s time Prime Minister Netanyahu to do more on this issue, do you think he’s doing enough?”
“No,” Biden replied.
Netanyahu was clearly angered by the response.
“What has changed in the last five days?” he declared. “What has changed? One thing. These murderers executed six of our hostages. They shot them in the back of the head. That’s what’s changed. And now, after this, we’re asked to show ‘seriousness?’ We’re asked to make concessions? What message does this send Hamas? It says, ‘Kill more hostages. Murder more hostages. You’ll get more concessions.’”
“The pressure internationally must be directed at these killers,” he asserted. “At Hamas. Not at Israel. We say ‘yes,’ they say ‘no’ all the time but they also murdered these people. And now we need maximum pressure on Hamas.”
“I don’t believe that either President Biden or anyone serious about achieving peace and achieving the release would seriously ask Israel —Israel — to make these concessions. We’ve already made them. Hamas has to make the concessions,” he stated.
In an obvious attempt to curry favor with supporters of Israel disillusioned with the Biden-Harris abandonment of support for the Jewish state, the Biden-Harris Department of Justice announced on Tuesday they declared six leaders of Hamas as terrorists, three of whom are already dead. The fig-leaf action rings hollow in the face of the administration’s unceasing criticism of the Israeli government and lack of support for the war effort.
In June, Tennessee GOP senator Bill Hagerty slammed the Biden administration from withholding arms to Israel that had been approved by Congress, snapping they should “get out of Israel’s way.”
“The norm is for the Executive Branch to submit formal notifications to Congress roughly 48-72 hours after committees informally cleared proposed arms sales,” he stated. “But the Biden Admin is violating this norm amid Israel’s multi-front war. It’s shocking what @POTUS @JoeBiden is doing to Israel as our ally faces its darkest hour. As SFRC ranking member @SenatorRisch put it, it’s time for the Biden Administration to get out of Israel’s way & let it defeat these Iran-backed terrorists!”
Senator Jim Risch (R-ID), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said:
The Biden Administration continues to try and have it both ways by claiming credit for security assistance to Israel that it has not provided. Meanwhile, those of us in Congress with jurisdiction over weapons sales have done our jobs and approved two separate tranches of arms transfers to Israel for formal notification to Congress, to include ammunition, vehicles to protect Israeli soldiers, and nearly $20B in F-15 aircraft. It is past time the administration move to formally notify the F-15 and ammunition sales and remove its existing hold on precision guided munitions. Micromanagement of Israel’s war on terror must end – let’s get out of the way.
“The implications of the Biden Administration’s conditional support for our closest ally in the Middle East are not lost on Hezbollah as its attacks from Lebanon increase in intensity and scale,” Risch continued. “Hamas continues to drive a wedge between the United States and Israel and isolate Israel from the international community. By signaling to terrorists that American support for Israel is conditional, we encourage Hamas to protract the war in Gaza, furthering risk to civilians, and incentivize Hezbollah to continue its attacks on Israel from the North. The Biden Administration’s fecklessness now courts a two-front war – the consequences of which would be disastrous for both Israel’s security and America’s standing in the world as a reliable partner.”
As Newsweek reported:
When Israel was looking to invade Rafah earlier this year, saying it was a stronghold of Hamas militants and a haven for hostage takers, it encountered fierce opposition in the White House. In March, Biden told MSNBC‘s Jonathan Capehart that a major Israeli operation in Rafah would be a “red line” for him, and the president suggested that the move could lead to a cut-off of some offensive weapons. Harris told ABC News in March, “We have been clear in multiple conversations and in every way that any major military operation in Rafah would be a huge mistake. Let me tell you something, I have been studying the maps.” She also said that she would not rule out “consequences” if Israel pushed forward.
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