US President Joe Biden denounces antisemitism at Holocaust remembrance

US President Joe Biden on Tuesday warned that the threat of antisemitism is growing, in remarks honoring the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust, as his support for Israel's assault on Gaza divides his Democratic Party.

"Never again simply translated for me means: Never forget. Never forgetting means we must keep telling the story, we must keep teaching the truth," Biden said as he addressed a bipartisan memorial held at the US Capitol's Emancipation Hall. "The truth is we're at risk of people not knowing the truth."

Biden spoke seven months to the day after the Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 by Israeli tallies, in what Biden has called the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.

"This hatred (of Jews) continues to lie deep in the hearts of too many people in the world and requires our continued vigilance and outspokenness," Biden said.

"Now here we are, not 75 years later, but just seven and a half months later, and people are already forgetting ... that Hamas unleashed this terror," he said. "I have not forgotten, nor have you. And we will not forget."

Biden's speech comes as Israel's retaliation has killed nearly 35,000 people in Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, according to Gaza health authorities, left many of the area's 2.3 million people on the brink of starvation and sparked protests in the US demanding that universities and the Biden administration withdraw support for Israel.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces seized the main border crossing between Egypt and southern Gaza, shutting down a vital aid route for Palestinian civilians as they prepared a possible offensive aimed at eliminating Hamas fighters.

In his keynote address for the US Holocaust Memorial Museum's annual National Commemoration of the Days of Remembrance, Biden aimed to cool a divided and divisive US debate about Jewish security, Zionism, free speech and support for Israel, in the country with the largest Jewish population after Israel.

Biden said his commitment to Israel was ironclad even amid disagreements with the country's government.

Reuters