WASHINGTON – The White House announced for the second day in a row Monday that there will be no public appearances by President Biden – moments after the State Department confirmed that at least nine US citizens were among more than 1,000 killed by Hamas terrorists during their weekend attack on Israel. .
President Biden spoke about the war on camera Saturday afternoon, hours after the terrorist group attacked an Israeli city from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, slaughtering residents and concertgoers and kidnapping at least 100 Israelis and foreigners.
Biden, 80, has no public events booked for either Sunday or Monday and faced ridicule Sunday night when his press office confirmed he was hosting a barbecue for his staff with a live band despite the international crisis.
Monday is federally recognized as Columbus Day, so no event like the daily White House briefing has been anticipated, although it is possible to change course and hold one.
The White House later issued a note saying that Biden met Monday morning with members of his national security forces and would “speak with some of our close allies about the latest developments in Israel” in the afternoon.
“For those unfamiliar, the ‘veil’ is simply a courtesy announcement to reporters that they should not expect public events,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said on X, formerly Twitter. “The veil does not mean that the President has stopped working … On the contrary, he works to support Israel all day long.”
Biden said Saturday in a three-minute speech that “when I talk to [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu this morning, I told him that the United States stands with the people of Israel in the face of this terrorist attack.”
The president did not take questions after his statement.
President Biden faced criticism for his lack of public appearances and hosting barbecues for staff following the attack. ZUMAPRESS.com
Biden’s own actions have come under increasing criticism as Iran’s role in financing, planning and authorizing the attack has emerged.
Biden in August began the process of unlocking $6 billion in funds — ostensibly for humanitarian use — for Iran as part of a September prisoner swap.
Critics say the fund frees Iran to increase the flow of funds for regional terror groups, although Biden allies insist that is not true.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps has been working with Hamas since August to plan the surprise attack and Iranian officials gave the final green light on Oct. 2 during a meeting held in Beirut, senior members of Hamas and the Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah told the Wall Street Journal Sunday.
A missile explodes in Gaza City during an Israeli airstrike on October 8, 2023. AFP via Getty Images
Syrian and European government sources also confirmed Iran’s role in the rampage to The Journal, although the Biden administration has yet to do so.
“This terror was funded by Biden’s stupid release of $6 billion to the people of Iran. Hamas’s war against Israel is now the second war started under Biden’s failed presidency,” tweeted former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ), a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination.
Former President Donald Trump, who is seeking a rematch against Biden, wrote, “A HORRIFIC ATTACK ON ISRAEL, LIKE THE ATTACK ON UKRAINE, WILL NOT HAPPEN IF I BECOME PRESIDENT – ZERO CHANCE!”
It is unclear whether Biden, 80, will at some point make a symbolic visit to Israel or to a US site important to Israel to mark the tragedy.
Biden’s re-election campaign recently cut an ad featuring footage of his February visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, to portray him directly as commander-in-chief.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
