US President Joe Biden has delivered a televised speech on the US response to Hamas’s attack against Israel
He said he will ask US Congress for billions of dollars in funding for Israel and Ukraine, saying abandoning the US allies was “just not worth it.”
But he urged Israeli leaders to learn from US mistakes after the 9/11 attacks and to avoid being “blinded by rage”
Biden’s speech comes after his whirlwind trip to Israel and after an agreement was reached with Egypt to allow some aid to enter Gaza.
Gaza remains under siege, with Israel blocking supplies of water, electricity, food and fuel across its border.
The most serious escalation in the conflict in decades erupted on 7 October, when Hamas attacked, killing more than 1,400 people.
More than 3,700 people have been killed in Gaza since then, the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory says.
His speech aimed to draw a link between the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel and he urged Congress to take action and pass an aid package supporting both nations.
Biden didn’t actually say how much he was seeking in extra funding, but is expected to be asking for $100bn.
“Hamas and Putin represent different threats, but they share this in common: they both want to completely annihilate a neighboring democracy.”
“If we don’t stop Putin’s appetite for power and control in Ukraine he won’t limit himself to Ukraine.”
Biden said that Hamas had unleashed “pure unadulterated evil on the world” and stressed there was “no higher priority for me than the safety of Americans held hostage.”
He also addressed the common sentiment that both conflicts felt far away to many Americans, saying that “by making sure Israel and Ukraine succeed it is vital for America’s national security”.
His final task was to explain why giving potentially billions in aid to Israel and Ukraine was important for Americans to support.
Terrorists and dictators need to “pay a price”, the president said.
