Biden pledges ‘rock solid’ support as world reacts in shock

High-level discussions between US and Israeli officials on military aid are already underway, with an announcement as early as Sunday.

US President Joe Biden addresses the Hamas attacks in Israel. Picture: AFP

Countries around the world have condemned a wave of Palestinian attacks on Israel by land, sea and air that in the ensuing fighting has left hundreds dead on both sides.

Germany and France on Saturday moved to reinforce security around Jewish temples, schools and monuments.

US President Joe Biden pledged “rock solid” support for Israel on Saturday in the face of what he described as “terrorist assaults” by Hamas, with an announcement on US military assistance expected imminently.

High-level discussions between US and Israeli officials on military aid were already under way, a US senior administration official said, with an announcement by Washington possible as early as Sunday (Monday AEDT).

Mr Biden described the assault as “a terrible tragedy on a human level” and said he had spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to underline his support.

US President Joe Biden shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York City in September. The US has condemned the attacks by “Hamas terrorists” against Israel and vowed to ensure the key US ally has the means to defend itself. Picture: Jim Watson/AFP

“I told him the US stands with the people of Israel in the face of these terrorist assaults,” Mr Biden said in a televised address from the White House.

“In my administration, support for Israel’s security is rock solid and unwavering. We’ll make sure they have the help their citizens need and they can continue to defend themselves.”

Mr Biden stressed that Israel – to which the US has supplied billions of dollars of arms – has “a right to defend itself” after Iran-backed Hamas launched air, sea and land strikes.

The senior administration official stressed it was “too early to say” whether Iran was “directly involved” in Hamas’s large-scale attack, but there was “no doubt Hamas is funded, equipped and armed by Iran and others”.

A senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, expressed support for the attack, calling it a “proud operation”.

Yahya Rahim Safavi expressed backing for the Palestinian militants “until the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem”. At a parliamentary session on Saturday, members chanted “Down with Israel”, “Down with America” and “Welcome Palestine”.

In contrast, Saudi Arabia, which is on the verge of striking diplomatic ties with Israel, called for an “immediate halt to the escalation between the two sides, protection of civilians, and self-control”.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, whose West Bank-based Fatah movement is a rival to Hamas, and “called on all leadership in the region to condemn” the attack on Israel.

Germany tightened police protection of Jewish and Israeli institutions, as supporters of the Palestinians took to the streets of Berlin to celebrate the attack.

France focused on Jewish temples and schools in cities across the country, as one Jewish leader expressed concern at the possibility the conflict might be imported.

Russia’s foreign ministry called for an “immediate ceasefire”, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Israel had an “indisputable” right to defend itself.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Israel and Palestinians to avoid further escalation. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was “shocked” by the attacks and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his country stood “in solidarity with Israel”.

AFP