US Senate majority leader: Hamas is just as bad as ISIS

Nevada Senator Harry Reid condemns Hamas and affirms U.S. support for Israel in Senate speech • "Hamas and ISIS are both vicious yet for some reason Hamas' brutality doesn't elicit the same horror from the international community," Reid contends.

Eli Leon and Israel Hayom Staff

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) speaks to the media on Capitol Hill on Thursday  |  Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images

Nevada Senator and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid condemned Hamas and affirmed the U.S.' s support for Israel on Thursday, calling the failure to condemn Hamas as one would condemn the Islamic State group "stunning hypocrisy."

"Hamas and ISIS are both vicious, corrupt, hateful, evil groups. And both are extreme. Yet, for some reason, Hamas' brutality doesn’t elicit the same horror from the international community as ISIS. How can that be?" Reid wondered as he addressed the Senate.

Reid's remarks came a day after President Barack Obama addressed the nation to outline his strategy in combating Islamic State, which has taken control of swaths of land in Syria and Iraq and has beheaded two American journalists. On Sunday, the group issued a video depicting the beheading of a British aid worker.

In his speech, Reid said that "much has been said about the terrorist group ISIS in recent days -- and rightfully so. ISIS is a vile mob of fanatics whose butchery knows no bounds. I’m confident that President Obama’s targeted action will degrade and destroy this menace."

Reid went on to say that one of the few differences between Islamic State and Hamas is the latter's narrow focus on one single objective -- the destruction of Israel.

"Consider its actions over the past several months: Hamas raided its own limited supplies for housing and general infrastructure, intended to repair the destruction that occurred during the last conflict they initiated. But Hamas instead used the stolen materials to build tunnels to hide and infiltrate Israel -- infiltrating to kill, maim, kidnap and murder the innocent. These depraved agitators launched thousands of rockets into Israel, hoping to inflict death and destruction. Their rockets had no aiming capabilities -- they fired indiscriminately, not caring whether they hit a child, a family or anyone," he said.

He explained that Israel responded the way any country would respond to these kinds of attacks in efforts to protect its citizens.