Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) hosted a closed-press showing of raw footage from Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday morning, a senior member of Rosen’s staff told JNS.
About 40 Democrats and Republicans attended the senators-only screening, which ran 47 minutes and was compiled by the Israeli government, the staffer said.
Rosen and Rubio delivered brief remarks before the screening. The Nevada senator, who is Jewish, discussed the importance of bearing witness to Hamas’s barbarity and of providing more security aid to Israel to defeat the terror organization and secure the release of the other hostages.
Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog spoke before the video was shown and attended the screening, per the Rosen staffer.
“On Oct. 7, Hamas launched the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history—the single deadliest day for the Jews since the Holocaust. Given the effort by some individuals and organizations around the world to distort and deny what happened that day, it was important that, as policymakers, we bear witness to the full extent of the atrocities committed by Hamas,” Rosen said.
“As Congress considers a security assistance package, I hope my colleagues keep in mind why Israel needs our unwavering support to defeat Hamas and secure the release of the remaining hostages,” she added.
Rubio said it’s very important to avoid sanitizing “this issue over time because we tend to see these horrifying incidents lose their impact.”
“The one thing that struck me was how proud and gleeful these people were with what they were doing to civilians, children, people sitting at home having breakfast and kids at a rave party,” the Florida senator said. “I thought that my colleagues would want to see it. That’s why I held the viewing, for them to get clear insight into what happened.”
