U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Israel on Thursday. His visit highlights the multi-front support the U.S. is offering the Jewish state.
“The message that I bring to Israel is this: You may be strong enough on your own to defend yourself – but as long as America exists, you will never, ever have to. We will always be there, by your side,” Blinken said during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Blinken repeated the warning issued by President Joe Biden, saying, “Any adversary – state or non-state – thinking of taking advantage of the current crisis to attack Israel: Don’t. The United States has Israel’s back.”
Blinken, who has family members who survived the Holocaust, also took time on Thursday to meet with several survivors of the Hamas terror attacks.
“We were saved by (a) miracle, but there are friends that we love that weren’t,” said Lior Gelbaum, who was at the music festival with her boyfriend.
Giving the 24-year-old a hug, Blinken promised that the U.S. is doing everything it can to get everyone taken hostage by the Hamas militants home.
In terms of a U.S. military response, as of Wednesday, the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group is already in the Middle East, and the U.S. Air Force has increased the number of fighter planes in the region.
“Our support for Israel is rock solid,” said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, “We’re working urgently to get Israel what it needs to defend itself including munitions and Iron Dome interceptors.”
Both Blinken and Austin re-affirmed that as Israel’s needs evolve the Biden administration will work with Congress to make sure they’re met.
Nathan Sales, former Ambassador at Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism under the Trump administration, said the U.S. cannot afford to allow Israel to lose this war.
“If Israel loses, we’re next for Iran. Israel is the ‘little Satan’ and the United States is the ‘great Satan’ and we have every interest in helping our ally in the Middle East, our great ally, Israel, on the frontlines of this conflict. We are linked in our interests. We are linked in our values, and we share common enemies. We need to do what we can to help them win,” Sales told CBN News.
There is bipartisan support in Congress for Israel’s right to defend itself. The House Foreign Affairs Committee proposed a resolution with over 400 co-sponsors, from both sides of the aisle, expressing unity behind Israel, and condemnation of the terror organization Hamas.
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