President Joe Biden’s administration has taken a U-turn on its earlier call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, and is drawing backlash from both sides of the political aisle for deleting tweets calling for a ceasefire.
“In discussions with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, we addressed the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel. I urged Turkey’s support for a cease-fire and the immediate release of all hostages held by Hamas,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a Biden appointee, posted on X (formerly known as Twitter).
That post was quickly deleted and replaced by a very terse statement simply declaring, “Israel has the right to defend itself, rescue any hostages, and protect its citizens.”
Nice catch, secretary.
That same day, the U.S. Office of Palestinian Affairs also came out in public support of a ceasefire, after Hamas terrorists crossed into Israel Saturday morning and killed Israelis.
“We unequivocally condemn the attack of Hamas terrorists and the loss of life that has incurred. We urge all sides to refrain from violence and retaliatory attacks. Terror and violence solve nothing,” the office declared. This statement was also immediately scrubbed from X.
After the statements had been removed from X, Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesperson, told RealClearPolitics that the posts were deleted because they “did not accurately reflect” the administration’s position on the violence occurring in Palestine and Israel.
Blinken’s post, Miller claimed, “did not accurately reflect the language of the accompanying readout, which stated that we are urging Hamas to halt its attacks on Israel.” “That is our position, as the secretary made clear in his appearances yesterday,” he added.
Nice catch, Matthew.
A summary of the call between Blinken and Fidan, released by the State Department, curiously did not mention a ceasefire.
“Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. They discussed developments related to the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel,” the State Department’s transcript revealed. “The secretary encouraged Türkiye’s continued engagement highlighted the United States’ unwavering focus on halting the attacks by Hamas and securing the release of all hostages.”
During appearances on Sunday morning news programs, Blinken did not explicitly mention a ceasefire, but he did make vague and oblique reference efforts by officials to “making every effort to pull Hamas back and prevent the situation from escalating.”
“The only things we’ve said to Israel are that we’re here, we’ve got your back, we want to make sure that you have the support that you need,” Blinken told Margaret Brennan on CBS News’ Face the Nation. “We want to make sure that you have the assistance that you need.”
In a slate of statements posted on X and published in a story by The Epoch Times, a handful of Republicans went on X and took Blinken to task for his now deleted statements.
“The US Secretary of State advocating for Israel to cease fire?!” asked Representative Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.), a Navy veteran.
“It’s massive counter attack time or innocent Israelis will continue to be terrorized and Americans could be next,” Lakota added later.
On October 8, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that his country had declared war on Hamas. Netanyahu declared that Israel would “take mighty vengeance” prior to the Cabinet’s vote to officially declare war.
According to reports published Monday, the death toll has risen to at least 900 Israelis, most of them civilians. Another 2,500 were reported wounded, IDF international spokesperson Lt. Col. (Res.) Jonathan Conricus told CBS News on Monday.
More than 250 of the dead were Israelis who came under attack at the Supernova music festival near the border with Gaza when militants opened fire on the crowd.
Israeli officials also say Hamas fighters captured more than 100 hostages, including women, children, and elderly people, who were apparently taken into Gaza as captives.
At least 11 U.S. citizens are among the dead, the White House confirmed Monday, while an unknown number of American citizens remain unaccounted for by the State Department.
In his attempt to distance himself from his administration’s support for ceasefire that has now been shoved down the memory hole, Joe Biden stated over the weekend that “my administration’s support for Israel’s security is rock solid and unwavering.”
A readout provided by the State Department appears to reveal that Biden communicated his support to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The President also conveyed that additional assistance for the Israeli Defense Forces is now on its way to Israel with more to follow over the coming days. The leaders also discussed ongoing efforts to ensure that no enemies of Israel believe they can or should seek advantage from the current situation,” the readout stated.
Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) was among those calling for the eradication of Hamas, which does not acknowledge Israel’s right to exist. The senator posted the following statement on X:
There can be no cease-fire, negotiated solution or peaceful coexistence with depraved barbarians who murder teen-aged girls, children & the elderly and then dump them in the streets of Gaza so bloodthirsty crowds can desecrate their bodies? Hamas must be eradicated & Israel must respond DISPROPORTIONATELY to this & to any futures attacks from any enemy.
