On Oct. 10, U.S. President Joe Biden spoke in support of Israel in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks in southern Israel by Hamas, and condemned their atrocities.

He also decried "hate" against Jews or Muslims, and spoke of the coordinated response by the U.S. and its allies.

Sheer evil

Biden described the Oct. 7 attacks as "pure, unadulterated evil", describing Hamas as a group "whose stated purpose was to kill Jews".

He accused Hamas of war crimes, including the deaths of over a thousand civilians, as well as rape, mutilation, and the killing of entire families including, children.

Biden confirmed that at least 14 Americans had been killed during the attack,

He further criticised Hamas' threat to execute hostages, and then compared the "brutality of Hamas" to the "worst rampages of ISIS".

Biden also gave his full throated support for Israel, saying that  the U.S. stood with Israel, and would "make sure Israel has what it needs to take care of its citizens, defend itself, and respond to this attack."

Hamas does not stand for the Palestinians: Biden

Biden then drew a line between Hamas and the Palestinian people, saying that the militant group did not "stand for the Palestinian people's right to dignity and self-determination".

He accused Hamas of using Palestinian civilians as "human shields", and that it offered "nothing but terror and bloodshed".

Mentioning that he had spoken to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thrice, Biden said that he expected Israel's response to be "swift, decisive, and overwhelming", as the U.S.'s response would be if they had been attacked.

But he also said that it was important for democracies, like the U.S. and Israel, to distinguish itself from "terrorists", particularly through the adherence to the laws of war.

Terrorists "purposefully target civilians, kill them"; whereas democracies uphold the laws of war; "there's a difference".

This was perhaps an attempt to signal that the U.S. wanted Israel to attempt to limit civilian casualties in its military response.

NBC News reported that Biden, in a private phone call to Netanyahu, had urged the Israeli leader to minimise civilian casualties.

Surging military assistance

Biden detailed the nature of U.S. assistance to Israel, first saying that the U.S. would ensure supply of vital military resources, and was also moving an aircraft carrier strike group to the region.

The U.S. would surge additional military assistance, including ammunition and interceptors for the Iron Dome anti-missile systems.

Biden added that his government would work with the U.S. Congress to ensure there was sufficient funding to assist Israel, although Congress is currently without a Speaker of the House following the ouster of Kevin McCarthy by both parties.

The U.S. will share intelligence and deploy experts to consult with Israel for the purposes of hostage recovery, particularly of U.S. citizens held hostage.

He also issued a stern warning to any country or organisation who was "thinking of taking advantage of this situation" — "Don't."

The U.S. will redeploy the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean, and according to the Wall Street Journal, the group arrived on Oct. 10.

The U.S. Naval Institute's own news service, USNI News, also reported that the U.S. was deploying U.S. Air Force squadrons to the area, including F-35 stealth fighters, and A-10 ground attack aircraft.

No place for hate

Biden also highlighted steps taken domestically, with U.S. law enforcement increasing security around the centres of the Jewish community.

This included federal agencies such as the FBI and Department of Homeland security, who were working to "identify and disrupt" domestic threats in the wake of the attacks.

Biden also warned that there "was no place for hate in America", whether it be against Jews or Muslims."

"What we reject is terrorism," he said.

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Top image via White House/ YouTube