Biden decries the ‘unconscionable’ Hamas attack and warns Israel’s enemies not to exploit the crisis

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Saturday decried the “unconscionable” assault by Hamas militants and his administration pledged to ensure Israel has “what it needs to defend itself” after the surprise attack that drew worldwide condemnation and anger from Israel’s allies. We’ll make sure that they have the help their citizens need and they can continue to defend themselves.” He said ``the world has seen appalling images -- thousands of rockets in the space of hours raining down on Israel cities” and that Hamas had killed not just Israeli soldiers but also Israeli civilians – “in the street, in their homes, innocent people murdered and wounded, entire families taken hostage by Hamas just days after Israel marked the holiest of days in the Jewish calendar. Zelenskyy, who is Jewish and had relatives who died in the Holocaust, said “Israel’s right to self-defense cannot be questioned.” European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen denounced the “senseless attack” by Hamas and said, “This violence is neither a political solution nor an act of bravery. “There is no excuse for terror,” Nehammer said in a post on X. Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister and a former ambassador to Israel and Egypt, told the state Tass agency that Moscow was in touch with “all parties, including Arab countries” and urged “an immediate cease-fire and peace” between Hamas and Israel. But in Iran, Israel’s regional archenemy, members of parliament opened their session Saturday by chanting “Death to Israel” and “Israel will be doomed, Palestine will be the conqueror.” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said “today’s operation created a new page in the field of resistance and armed operation against occupiers,” the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.