US President Joe Biden said today that the attack by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Israel over the weekend was an "act of absolute evil".
"This is an act of absolute evil," Biden said during a speech at the White House, adding that at least 14 Americans were killed in the attack that left hundreds dead. American citizens are among those being held by Hamas after its attack, he added.
"At least 14 American citizens have been killed and we now know that American citizens are among those being held by Hamas."
The attacks by Hamas against Israel are the "absolute evil", the American president repeated, speaking of "shocking" news, of "killed babies, entire families slaughtered".
"At this time we must be absolutely clear. We stand by Israel", he emphasized.
The US president also said he was ready to deploy "additional resources" to support Israel after the deadly attack by Hamas.
"The United States has also increased (its) military presence in the region to strengthen (its) deterrence effort."
"We are ready to deploy additional resources if necessary."
Law enforcement agencies are taking steps to prevent any internal threat that may arise after Hamas attacks Israel, Biden said.
The FBI said earlier that it was "closely monitoring developments" but added that it had "no specific and reliable information indicating a threat to the United States due to Hamas attacks in Israel."
At the same time, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that 20 or more Americans are missing after the Hamas attack. Sullivan said it is unknown how many of those reported missing are being held hostage.
"We believe that there are 20 or more Americans who are currently missing, but I want to emphasize that this does not necessarily mean that there are 20 or more Americans who are being held hostage. That's just the number of missing people right now."
Source: RES-EAP
