The last two Democratic presidents have kept a conspicuous silence about Hamas’ bloody blitz on Israel since it began early Saturday.
Neither Bill Clinton nor Barack Obama had weighed in on the carnage on social media or through their post-presidential foundations as of Monday afternoon, despite commenting on other major developments such as the recent death of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
While her husband stayed silent, Hillary Clinton decried the terrorist attacks on Sunday afternoon.
“My prayers are with everyone affected by the horrific attacks by Hamas in Israel,” the former first lady, senator from New York, and secretary of state wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “The United States stands in strong support of our ally, today and every day.”
Both Obama’s and Bill Clinton’s silence stand in sharp contrast with the other three living former presidents.
Donald Trump, 77, George W. Bush, also 77, and Jimmy Carter, 99, or their post-presidential organizations have all rebuked the attack in some form.
The Carter Center said in a statement Sunday that it “strongly condemns the targeting of Israeli and Palestinian civilians and calls for genuine dialogue as well as international collective action to halt hostilities in the region.”
The George W. Bush Presidential Center in Texas also denounced the bloody attack and declared support for the Jewish state.
“The George W. Bush Institute strongly condemns the heinous terrorist attacks on Israel that claimed scores of innocent civilians. We urge the United States and our allies to stand unequivocally with Israel, its government and people, and support Israel’s right to defend itself against these threats,” the organization said.
Trump, who is seeking a second term as president, quickly decried the violence in his own statement: “These Hamas attacks are a disgrace, and Israel has every right to defend itself with overwhelming force.”
Biden has delivered public remarks on the situation deployed warships to the region in response.
“The United States unequivocally condemns this appalling assault against Israel by Hamas terrorists from Gaza, and I made clear to Prime Minister Netanyahu that we stand ready to offer all appropriate means of support to the Government and people of Israel,” the president said Saturday afternoon in brief comments from the State Dining Room.
Obama famously had an icy relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who gave a speech to the GOP-led House of Representatives in 2015 assailing the Iran nuclear agreement.
Bill Clinton helped broker the Oslo Accords between the Palestinians and Israelis, which ultimately failed to usher in peace between the two sides.
Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist group largely concentrated in the Gaza Strip, caught Israeli defenses off-guard with a barrage of thousands of rockets and ground attacks at daybreak.
At least 1,000 Israelis are believed to have died in the bloody violence with an estimated 2,600 wounded, according to Israel’s Army Radio.
So far the State Department has confirmed nine Americans were killed.
Hamas has also abducted an unknown number of hostages and thousands of people on both sides of the conflict have been wounded.
Israel’s cabinet has declared war for the first time in 50 years and launched airstrikes on Gaza ahead of an expected ground attack.