The United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy strongly condemned Hamas's attack on Israel as an act of terrorism.
On the 9th (local time), according to the White House, the leaders of the five countries expressed in a joint statement, "We express our steadfast and united support for Israel and our clear condemnation of Hamas and its heinous terrorist acts." They added, "We make it clear that Hamas's terrorist acts have no legitimacy or legality and must be universally condemned," emphasizing, "Terrorist acts can never be justified."
The five leaders stated, "We will support Israel's efforts to protect its country and people from such atrocities," and emphasized, "Now is not the time for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks for their own gain." They further stressed, "In the coming days, as allies and friends of Israel, we will continue to unite and cooperate to enable Israel to defend itself and ultimately create conditions for a peaceful and unified Middle East."
In particular, they said, "We all recognize the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people," and emphasized, "We support equal measures of justice and freedom for both Israelis and Palestinians." This is interpreted as an attempt to respond separately to the moderate Palestinian Authority and Palestinian residents, distinct from Hamas, the armed faction designated as terrorists by most countries. The five leaders stressed, "However, Hamas does not represent those aspirations and only brings greater fear and bloodshed to the Palestinian people."
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