Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on Monday praised Israel's "unshakeable resolve" on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack by Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists.
"Time has not dulled the pain inflicted on the people of Israel one year ago today, nor eased the grief left in its wake," McConnell said in a news release. "October 7th confronted the world with the irredeemable evil of Iran-backed terror and drew emboldened strains of the world's oldest hatred out of the shadows.
"The Jewish state has met a year of trial with unshakeable resolve. In the face of resurgent anti-Semitism, Jewish families and communities around the world have refused to live in fear. And in steadfast vigil, families of innocent hostages have kept the faith."
At least 1,200 Israeli civilians were massacred in the attack and about 250 others were taken hostage. About 100 hostages are still being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has conducted a yearlong military operation to rescue them and eliminate the terror group as a threat.
McConnell criticized the "leaders or elite institutions" that "attempt to draw moral equivalence" between these attacks and Israel's response, saying, "the difference is unmistakable."
He argued the United States and its allies have an obligation to defend Israel. He said, "The terrorists and their patrons seek not only to destroy Israel, but to challenge the very American-led order that preserves our way of life.
"As Americans and free people around the world remember the victims of October 7th and pray for peace, let us recommit to stand with Israel in its righteous fight."