Hoyer Statement Reiterating Support for Israel Against Hamas Terrorists
WASHINGTON, DC — Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) released the following statement today reiterating his support for Israel against Hamas terrorists. See below for a video of his statement and a transcript of his remarks:
Click here for a video of his full statement.
“Yesterday, President Biden spoke for all who respect decency, humanity, and international law. He spoke for me.
“Jews have the unequivocal right to live safely and securely in the world's only Jewish state. And Israel – like any other sovereign nation – has an absolute right to defend itself and its people.
“Israelis must take all necessary action to win this war against Hamas, recover hostages, preserve the safety of innocent Palestinian civilians living under Hamas’ authoritarian regime, and eliminate Hamas' capacity to wage war ever again. We must support that effort.
“Working alongside the Biden-Harris Administration, I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure that Congress maintains its strong, bipartisan commitment to Israel's survival, sovereignty, and security during this trying time.
“I join President Biden in issuing the strongest possible condemnation of Hamas and in warning Iran, Hezbollah, and all who back these terrorists not to escalate this conflict further.
“Those who cherish peace and human dignity can only look upon the brutal violence that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad unleashed on thousands of Israeli civilians these past few days with horror, disgust, and absolute contempt.
“These terrorists have killed over 1,200 Israelis, wounded more than 3,000 others, and abducted, took hostage, committed a war crime by abducting at least 150 people. Among the hostages are Holocaust survivors in wheelchairs. At least 22 American citizens were killed in these heinous attacks, and at least twenty Americans remain unaccounted for – likely held captive in Gaza. The graphic videos that continue to emerge from Israel are depraved and sickening.
“I have visited Kibbutz Kfar Aza four times over the years. I am devastated to see this place of community turned into a place of tragedy and slaughter.
“From defiling the dead bodies of innocents to massacring Israeli infants, these terrorist extremists perpetrate criminal acts of violence indistinguishable from those carried out by ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and the Taliban.
“It is not enough for America and the free world to decry these terrorists and their crimes. In this challenging hour, we have a duty - a duty - to give Israel the time and support necessary to protect its people, rescue all hostages, and eliminate these terrorist organizations so that their attacks never, never occur again.
“This terror campaign is yet another instance of the antisemitic persecution that Jews have faced for millennia. We must never misconstrue or minimize Hamas' objective, stated in its own charter, 'to fight Jews and kill them.' That is their objective. That's what they have done. They need to be held fully accountable.
“As Jews in Israel and around the world contend with the immense personal trauma of this moment, they ought to know that everyone with basic human decency shares their grief and outrage.
“My prayers are with the people of Israel and the Jewish diaspora during this trying time.
“They continue to show the same courage and faith that empowered Jews to establish the modern State of Israel in their ancestral homeland seventy-five years ago and to sustain it courageously ever since.
“I stand with them, and together, we will stand strong and be victorious.”