The White House has issued a statement from US President Joe Biden on the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.
Biden said October 7 had become the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust.
Full statement:
On this day last year, the sun came out on what was supposed to be a joyous Jewish holiday. At sunset, October 7 was the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust. Today marks a year of mourning for the more than 1,200 innocent people of all ages, including 46 Americans, massacred in southern Israel by the terrorist group Hamas. A year since Hamas committed horrific acts of sexual violence.
One year since more than 250 innocents were taken hostage, including 12 Americans. A year for wound survivors, invisible and invisible, who will never be the same again. And a year of devastating war. On this solemn anniversary, let us bear witness to the indescribable brutality of the October 7 attacks, but also to the beauty of the lives that were stolen that day…
I believe that history will also remember October 7 as a dark day for the Palestinian people because of the conflict that Hamas broke out that day. Many civilians have suffered greatly during this year of conflict-and tens of thousands have been killed, a human toll greatly exacerbated by terrorists hiding and operating among innocent people.
We will not stop working to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza that brings hostages home, allows for an increase in humanitarian aid to alleviate suffering on the ground, guarantees Israel’s security, and ends this war. Israelis and Palestinians alike deserve to live in security, dignity and peace.
Biden, in the final months of his presidency, has failed to exert U.S. influence – as Israel’s biggest arms supplier and diplomatic shield at the U. N. – on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
