Joe Biden marked the anniversary of the October 7 attack in Israel with a candle-lighting ceremony at the White House on Monday.
The US president was joined by Jill Biden and Rabbi Aaron Alexander to offer a short prayer. Biden did not speak at the ceremony, but he did pay tribute at the ceremony. statement It called it “the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust” and condemned the “vicious rise in anti-Semitism in America” since the attack.
“The attacks of October 7 brought to the fore the painful memories left by thousands of years of hatred and violence against Jews,” he said, before also noting the suffering of the Palestinian people.
“I believe that October 7th will be remembered in history as a dark day for the Palestinian people because of the conflict that Hamas caused on that day. I experienced the pain of
Kamala Harris too On Monday, he paid tribute to the victims of the October 7 attack, calling on them to “never lose sight of the dream of peace, dignity and security for all” in honor of the victims.
“What Hamas did that day was pure evil, brutal and disgusting,” the U.S. vice president said in a statement. statement. “And it reignited deep fears not only in Israel but among Jews in the United States and around the world.”
Harris also gave a nod to Israel's year-long war in Gaza, in which more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed.
“I am heartbroken by the scale of death and destruction in Gaza over the past year. Tens of thousands of lives have been lost, children have repeatedly fled for safety, mothers and fathers have lost food, food, and more. We are struggling to get water, medicine,” she said. . “It is long past time to reach a cease-fire agreement with the hostages to end the suffering of innocent people.”
Harris and Donald Trump are both scheduled to speak at an event marking the first anniversary of the attack on Monday.
Harris was scheduled to hold a ceremony at the Naval Observatory in Washington, the vice president's official residence, and plant a pomegranate tree, a symbol associated with the Jewish New Year, which began last week.
A White House spokeswoman said Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, will give remarks reaffirming their “unwavering commitment to the security of Israel and the Jewish people.”
Mr. Emhoff, who is Jewish, also attended a memorial service Oct. 7 by the American Jewish Committee., There he led prayers for peace.
“May the day come when war and bloodshed will cease and a great peace will embrace the world. May the day come when nations will no longer threaten nations and the human family will never know war again,” he said.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at a memorial event later Monday at his golf course in Doral, Florida.
“Leaders of the Jewish community gather to remember the 1,200 lives lost when they were taken hostage and murdered on that fateful morning one year ago,” the Trump campaign said in a statement.
He is widely expected to turn this event into an attack on his rival. He has said in recent weeks that he is Israel's “best president ever” and that Jewish voters who support Harris “should have their heads checked.”
