WASHINGTON – Condolences from the White House, members of Congress and political campaigns came after the Israeli Defense Forces found the bodies of six hostages.
Politicians from both sides of the aisle mourned the deaths of six hostages, including American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin. The IDF identified the other hostages as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarus and Master Sgt. Stallion Danino.
In a statement, President Joe Biden said he was “broken and outraged” and stressed that “Hamas leaders are paying for these crimes.” Likewise, Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement:[M]ay Hersh’s memory be a blessing,” referring to a phrase Jews use when mourning the dead.
“Hamas is an evil terrorist organization,” Harris said in a statement issued in his official capacity as vice president, not as a political candidate. “With these killings, Hamas has even more American blood on its hands.”
Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, also called Hamas a “brutal terrorist organization” and wrote to X: “We condemn their continued atrocities against both Americans and Israelis in the strongest possible terms.”
Both Biden and Harris spoke with Goldberg-Polin’s parents, Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, on Sunday, according to the White House and Harris’ post about X. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also held a virtual meeting Sunday with the families of the American hostages, discussing the Goldberg-Polin killing and diplomatic updates, according to the White House.
Former President Donald Trump said at X that “we mourn the senseless deaths of Israeli hostages,” but laid the blame for the deaths at the feet of Biden and Harris.
“Our country and amazing people are not safe under Joe Biden, and they will be less safe under Kamala Harris,” he said. “This horror would never have happened if I were president, and it ends the day I’m back in the Oval Office.”
Unlike Trump, the reactions of members of Congress were largely non-political, expressing heartbreak and anger at Hamas rather than directing their anger at American politicians.
“His death and the killing of the five other captured hostages show how brutal Hamas is and how urgent it is to release all hostages now,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., X.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said he was “heartbroken” and added, “Every hostage must be released. Bring them all home.”
“I hope there will be pressure on Hamas and Netanyahu to end this war and release the hostages,” said Rep. Ro Khanna, R-Calif., on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., blamed Iran for the deaths of the hostages and called on the Biden administration and Israel to “hold Iran accountable.”
“If you want the hostages home, as we all do, you have to increase the cost of Iran. Iran is the great Satan. Hamas is the junior partner. They are barbaric, religious Nazis — Hamas, they could care less about the Palestinians,” Graham said in an interview Sunday with ABC News ” This week”.
“I would urge the Biden administration and Israel to hold Iran accountable for the fate of the remaining hostages and put Iran’s oil refineries on a target list if the hostages are not released,” he said.
He also criticized Harris for missing Netanyahu’s speech to Congress in July, saying he had boycotted it, “sending a signal to Hamas and Iran that America is really not with Israel.” At the time, Harris was scheduled to be in Indianapolis during Netanyahu’s speech on his then-presidential campaign, but met with Netanyahu privately later.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said on X that he was “heartbroken” by the news of Goldberg-Polin’s death and urged Israel to “finish the job.”
“The news of Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s death at the hands of Hamas breaks my heart. The savages who killed this American citizen and continue to hold others hostage must pay a heavy price. Israel should get the job done to end this Iranian sponsored terror and America must support this effort without warning/conditions,” he wrote.
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote to X that the hostages should “be home with their families,” but instead they were murdered.
“I am truly heartbroken by the deaths of several hostages held by Hamas, including American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin. These innocent people should be home today with their families; instead, they were murdered by terrorists. My heart goes out to all the families of those who lost their lives, including the family of Goldberg-Polin, who met earlier this summer, McCaul wrote.
Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle skewered Hamas as an “organization of true evil,” “monsters” and “brutal, barbaric, religious Nazis.”
For months, the White House has been pushing for a ceasefire proposal that would lead to the release of the hostages. However, the negotiations have not been successful. As thousands of Israelis protested the hostage trade in the streets of Tel Aviv on Sunday, American politicians repeated their call for the hostages to be returned home.
“Only a ceasefire will bring the hostages home safely, and every day without a deal puts their lives, the lives of Palestinians, and every innocent life in Gaza at risk,” Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Massa., said in X.
World leaders also expressed their horror and called for an end to the war.
French President Emmanuel Macron said at X that he felt “shock and outrage” and stressed that “there must be an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages, including his compatriots Ohad Yahalomi and Ofer Kalderon.”
“Canada stands with the families of the victims in your grief,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at X, adding that Hamas must have “no future in controlling Gaza.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said at X that the news was a “devastating reminder of the need to release all hostages and end the nightmare of war in Gaza.”
More than 1,200 people were killed in Israel and around 250 others, including six people whose bodies were found yesterday, were taken hostage in the October 7 terror attack by Hamas.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
