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(JNS) U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden sent their best wishes and prayers to Muslims stateside and worldwide on Sunday, ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
“The sacred month is a time for reflection and renewal,” the president began. “This year, it comes at a moment of immense pain. The war in Gaza has inflicted terrible suffering on the Palestinian people.”
Biden again cited official statistics used by Hamas—which Washington has designated a terror organization for nearly 26-and-a-half years—claiming that “more than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of them civilians, including thousands of children.”
“Some are family members of American Muslims, who are deeply grieving their lost loved ones today,” he said. “Nearly two million Palestinians have been displaced by the war; many are in urgent need of food, water, medicine and shelter.”
“As Muslims gather around the world over the coming days and weeks to break their fast, the suffering of the Palestinian people will be front of mind for many,” he said. “It is front of mind for me.”
Biden stated that Washington will “continue to lead international efforts to get more humanitarian assistance into Gaza by land, air and sea,” noting that the United States plans to create “a temporary pier on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments of aid” and is airdropping aid in the Strip.
‘Insisting’ that Israel provide aid
“We’ll continue to work with Israel to expand deliveries by land, insisting that it facilitate more routes and open more crossings to get more aid to more people,” Biden said.
The U.S. president also said that Washington will “continue working non-stop to establish an immediate and sustained ceasefire for at least six weeks as part of a deal that releases hostages” and that it will push for a “two-state solution,” which he called “the only path toward an enduring peace.”
In the United States, Biden said that there has been “an appalling resurgence of hate and violence toward Muslim Americans.”
“Islamophobia has absolutely no place in the United States, a country founded on freedom of worship and built on the contributions of immigrants, including Muslim immigrants,” he stated. “No one should ever fear being targeted at school, at work, on the street, or in their community because of their background or beliefs.”
“To Muslims across our country, please know that you are deeply valued members of our American family,” he added. “To those who are grieving during this time of war, I hear you, I see you and I pray you find solace in your faith, family, and community.”
The president drew criticism for his statement.
“Not only is Biden using Hamas talking points but he’s using Hamas statistics. The Jews have officially been abandoned by this White House,” wrote Dovid Margolin, senior editor at Chabad.”
“Biden administration working very hard to recapture the CAIR, Code Pink, JVP demographic,” wrote Alberto Miguel Fernandez, a former U.S. State Department official and current vice president at the Middle East Media Research Institute.
“Biden’s Ramadan message is all about Gaza and ‘Islamophobia.’ Of course,” he added. “This is pandering. But completely predictable. While a majority of Americans are pro-Israel, here Biden seeks to appeal to a very specific single (or dual) issue demographic he needs to win back and hopefully energize before November.”
