Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under Trump, said that Hamas had “declared war on Israel” on the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, calling the group a “bloodthirsty terrorist organization backed by Iran and determined to kill as many innocent lives as possible.”
“The reports out of Israel are horrific with a stunning number of dead and wounded and should be universally condemned,” Haley said. “Israel has every right to defend its citizens from terror. We must always stand with Israel and against this Iranian regime.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called for “a swift and lethal response” and said that “America must stand with Israel.”
“The dastardly terrorist attacks perpetrated against innocent Israeli civilians by Iran-backed terror group Hamas deserve a swift and lethal response,” the GOP presidential candidate — and longtime ally to Israel — said in a social media post, followed by a video of him speaking directly to camera.
“Iran has helped fund this war against Israel and Joe Biden’s policies that have gone easy on Iran has helped to fill their coffers,” DeSantis said in a video posted to social media.
South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott also blamed the Biden administration. “The truth is though, Joe Biden funded these attacks on Israel,” he said.
“America’s weakness is blood in the water for bad actors, but this is worse than that. We didn’t just invite this aggression, we paid for it. Iran is the biggest funder of Hamas. This is the Biden $6 billion ransom payment at work,” Scott wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“This is what happens when [Biden] projects weakness on the world stage, kowtows to the mullahs in Iran with a $6 Billion ransom, and leaders in the Republican Party signal American retreat as Leader of the Free World,” former Vice President Mike Pence wrote on social media.
“Every American should condemn the unprovoked and massive attack on Israel by terrorists in Hamas,” Pence said in an earlier post, calling Israel “our most cherished ally.”
A spokesperson for Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign, Tricia McLaughlin, issued a statement on his behalf.
“We stand with Israel and are appalled by these attacks,” McLaughlin said. “Shooting civilians and kidnapping children are war crimes. Israel’s right to exist and defend itself must never be doubted. Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists cannot be allowed to prevail.”
