Republican Senator John Kennedy argued that President Joe Biden cannot be described as a defense hawk, a view he shared on Fox News. He suggested that this stance partly contributed to the war in Ukraine and the Hamas assault on Israel.
“America has a president who, frankly, is more focused on debates about whether a man can breastfeed than on national security. Put yourself in our enemies’ shoes. Our adversaries see an America whose president refuses to supply Ukraine with the weapons it needs to prevail, and an administration that resists imposing sanctions on Iranian oil while seemingly guiding $10 billion toward Tehran rather than $6 billion,” Kennedy stated.
He added that Biden and his team display weaknesses to U.S. adversaries. Kennedy identified China, Russia, and Iran as key opponents facing the nation.
On October 7, Hamas launched thousands of rockets into Israel and announced the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. Thousands of militants crossed into Israeli territory, seizing dozens of military assets and more than a hundred hostages. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu declared that the country was at war.
The Israeli Defense Forces launched an operation named Iron Swords, with a primary aim of dismantling Hamas. The Israeli air force conducted hundreds of strikes on Hamas targets across the Gaza Strip, and Israel’s National Security Council decided to cut off water, food, supplies, electricity, and fuel to the enclave. Israel informed the United Nations on October 13 that 1.1 million Palestinians should evacuate to southern Gaza within 24 hours ahead of a ground assault.
Previously in the United States, questions arose about the underlying reasons behind Hamas’s attack on Israel.