(WASHINGTON)—Congressman Allen West (R-FL) released this statement today regarding the Hamas attacks on Israel”

“For the first time in some 20 years, enemy rockets and missiles have fallen near the Israeli city of Tel Aviv. The government of Israel has noted that, since the beginning of 2012, more than 768 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza, and over 12,000 in the past 12 years. Israel, like any nation, has the right to defend itself against such vicious attacks. There is no justification for the violence that Hamas and other terrorist organizations are employing against the people of Israel. I strongly condemn the actions of a known radical Islamic terrorist organization, Hamas.

Hamas claims to have the best interests of the Palestinian people at heart, yet it continues to engage in violence that does nothing but set back the Palestinian cause. Attacking Israel on a near daily basis does nothing to help Palestinians in Gaza, nor to move the Palestinian people any closer to achieving self-determination and independence. My greater concern is the alliance between the Muslim Brotherhood-controlled government of Egypt and Hamas. Egypt possesses a modern military force and if under the control of radical Islamists, namely Salafists and the Muslim Brotherhood, could pose a serious threat to Israel from the Sinai desert. Further exacerbating this situation are the unaccounted for shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles that escaped from Libya.

From the north, we must recognize the potential threat from Hasan Nasrallah and Hezbollah with their medium- and long-range rockets and missiles. Since the 11^thanniversary of 9-11 United States Embassy and Consulate attacks, we have seen a growing threat in the Middle East. This threat, the common radical Islamic enemy of Israel and America, now feels emboldened from a foreign policy of appeasement, the so-called pivot from the Middle East, and a posture of “provocative weakness.” Indeed the enemies of Israel paid attention to actions, not words or phone calls, and since President Obama decided not to visit our best ally, they associated that with a green light.

Our best response at this time would be a demonstration of naval strength, such as to move an Amphibious Ready Group (ARG)/Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) into theater to provide a show of force in support of Israel. We also should have additional missile defense systems alerted for deployment.

Now is a time when Israel, the world, and their enemies must know, by action, that the United States of America will never abandon the State of Israel and that never again, truly means never again.