The United States has reiterated its condolences to the families of those who were killed by Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on Saturday, including the 14 American citizens who have been confirmed died.
State Department Spokesman, Mathew Miller who made this known during the Press Briefing on Tuesday said there are 20 Americans who remain unaccounted for.
According to him, “The department is actively engaging with the families of those U.S. citizens. None of us can imagine the grief that they are feeling today, and we are doing everything we can in our power to offer them all appropriate consular assistance”.
While giving the update on the efforts made by the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, Miller said the Secretary has been engaged with Israeli partners to ensure that Israel has everything that it needs to defend itself.
Citing both President Joe Biden and Secretary Blinken’s statement which made it clear that United States stand ready to offer all appropriate means of support to the government and people of Israel.
“The first tranche of security assistance is on its way and will arrive in the coming days, and more will follow.
“Second, the Secretary has been working the phones with his foreign counterparts to ensure that anyone who has lines of communication with parties hostile to Israel should use those channels to say that now is not the time to take advantage of this situation.
“The President has made that point clear – has made that point clearly and forcefully, and it is one Secretary Blinken has reiterated in his calls with leaders in the region”.
Thirdly, he said the Secretary has been intensely focused on securing the release of all hostages held in Gaza, saying there are number of countries who have the ability to deliver messages to Hamas.
Adding that United States have made clear to those countries that they should urge Hamas to release all hostages immediately. This is a matter we take incredibly seriously, State Department Spokesman said.
Miller announced that Secretary Blinken will be traveling to Israel in the coming days to engage Israeli partners directly about the situation on the ground and how United States can continue to best support them in their fight against the terrorists who launched these horrific attacks.
“Our support for Israel is unwavering, and the Secretary looks forward to meeting with senior leaders in the Israeli Government and continuing the discussions he and the President have been having with them since the initial attacks on Saturday”, he said.
Recall that Israel declared war on the Palestinian militant group Hamas after it carried out an unprecedented attack by air, sea and land on Saturday.
The large-scale surprise assault has left at least 900 dead in Israel, prompting a lethal volley of retaliatory Israeli airstrikes on Gaza that killed at least 687 people.
As they retreated into Gaza, the militants claimed to have taken at least 100 hostages with them and have threatened to kill them if airstrikes target Gaza without warning. Israel has pledged that Hamas will pay a heavy price.
