U.S. Senator Katie Britt Reaffirms Strong Support for Israel Following Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Address

Rebukes Vice President Harris for Absence

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 24, 2024 – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) today spoke on the Senate floor in support of Israel following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress.

Senator Britt’s remarks are below:

“Madame President, I rise today in support of America’s great ally, Israel. Israel is more than an ally. She represents the hope in the Middle East, hope for the world.

“I actually visited Israel two weeks after October 7th –after that attack—visiting with a bipartisan delegation not only to Israel but throughout the Middle East. Remember, Israel was created after the Holocaust so that the Jewish people would never have to hide again. This is something that former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer talked to us about during our visit. A colleague of mine shared that his daughter asked him right after 9/11, ‘Are we safe?’

“The truth is October 7th was similar to our 9/11. However, there’s also a large difference: On October 8th, Israel knew exactly who the perpetrator was. They knew exactly where they were. They were just miles away, their neighbor. It’s like if we woke up on September 12th, 2001, and we had the terrorists who had masterminded the attacks of 9/11 living next-door in Brooklyn. Additionally, they [Hamas] said they would come back again, and again, and again until they eradicated the Jewish people and the State of Israel. That’s the proximity and the gravity of the threat that Israel faces. It’s literally at their doorstep. And bottom line: They can’t tell their daughters that they’re safe right now.

“291 days –over 9 months— have passed now, but we can’t forget what happened on October 7th. Make no mistake, what Hamas did was pure evil: They murdered entire families, beheaded babies, dragged grandparents, some Holocaust survivors from their wheelchairs, to their death. They raped women. They took mothers and daughters hostages after slaughtering their fathers and brothers. They held innocent people hostage and used them as human shields.

“As I think about this as a mom, I cannot imagine the agony parents are going through knowing that their children, their loved ones are being held hostage and used as human shields. I think about the moment they talk about parents being murdered in front of their children; children being murdered in front of their parents.

“How could anyone be so evil?

“There is no doubt that ‘Never Again’ is now, and not just overseas.

“Unfortunately, here at home. Look no further than the disgusting pro-Hamas, antisemitic protests that have taken place on college campuses and in city streets across our nation, and today in our nation’s capital. Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came before Congress and asked us to do what we have promised—to stand behind Israel; to stand behind the Jewish people.

“America cannot be a country of broken promises. We cannot let our allies down. We cannot be viewed as a country that is weak and unreliable around the world. We must stand strongly with Israel and show her support not just in normal times, but when she needs us the most.

“Israel has more than a right to defend herself.  She has an obligation. She has an obligation to freedom loving people around the world, as a beacon of democracy in the Middle East, and to the very people that she serves. Israel must ensure that this never happens again.

“America can and must help Israel fulfill that mission—help to bring every single hostage home and help to bring about sustainable peace and more prosperity there in the Middle East.

“Remember—Hamas doesn’t just want to destroy peace in the Middle East. They want to destroy Israel and wipe the Jewish people off the face of the planet.

“We also have to remember who funds and fuels Hamas. It’s time to use every tool in our toolbox to dry up Iran financially. We’ve done it before under the Trump Administration, and I know we can do it again.

“This isn’t complicated— the more money Iran has, the more they use it for nuclear proliferation and they use it to fund terrorism. They fund Hamas in Gaza; they fund the Houthis in Yemen; and they fund Hezbollah in Lebanon. We know what that means for Israel, and, frankly, we know what that means for America.

“It’s past time to reestablish credibility in America and its deterrence.

“We will only achieve peace through strength, and that means giving Israel everything she needs to permanently end the threat of Hamas.

“As I listened to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech today, I was in awe of the Israeli people’s courage. The courage to fight for Democracy. The courage to fight to secure peace in the Middle East. And the courage to fight for their very existence.

“Congress is behind Israel. Alabama, the first state in America to call for the establishment of the Jewish state, stands behind Israel. And the United States of America is behind Israel.

“As a Christian, as an American, and as an Alabamian, I firmly support Israel, and I am incredibly proud to do so.

“I yield the floor.”

Senator Britt also participated in a press conference today with Senator Joni Ernst to discuss Israel. Watch her remarks HERE.

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