The White House and Republican Senator Ted Cruz engaged in a heated exchange over the Biden administration’s response to Israel on Monday, with the latter accusing the administration of downplaying the escalation in hostilities between the two countries.
Cruz, who has been a vocal critic of President Joe Biden’s foreign policy decisions, tweeted that the White House “refused to condemn Hamas terrorists and refused to even call it terrorism,” while also falsely claiming that the administration “urged a cease fire without demanding an end to Hamas’ rocket attacks on Israel”.
In response, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki posted a tweet from the White House Twitter account that read: “That is a lie.”
Psaki subsequently followed up on the tweet with a statement that condemned Hamas terrorists, saying “We condemn any attacks on innocent civilians, and we call on all parties to de-escalate tensions and bring an end to the violence. The United States is working intensively to bring an end to the violence.”
The exchange came amid escalating tensions between Israel and Hamas in recent days, with the worst violence in years that has left more than 170 people dead, including dozens of civilians.
