By Ginika Igboke
President Donald Trump and the First Lady extended their sympathies to victims and families affected by violent attacks in the United States, Australia, and Syria on Dec. 14, as they welcomed guests to the White House for a combined Christmas and Hanukkah celebration.
“Before we begin, I want to just pay my respects to the people—unfortunately, two are no longer with us,” Trump said, referring to the shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others injured.
“Two are looking down on us right now from heaven,” he added.
“To the families of those two that are no longer with us, I pay my deepest regards and respects from the United States of America. It’s a very important thing to say, and we mean it.”
Trump also addressed the mass shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach in Australia, which targeted a Hanukkah celebration hosted by the Bet Yosef Synagogue.
“And likewise, in Australia, as you know, there was a terrible attack,” Trump said. “That was an anti-Semitic attack, obviously, and I just want to pay my respects to everybody.”
The attack occurred around 7 p.m. as night fell on Dec. 14, the first night of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, which commemorates the reclaiming of Jerusalem and the rededication of the Jewish Temple.
“We’re here to celebrate Christmas, and today we can very loudly say we celebrate Hanukkah, because that was such a horrible attack,” Trump said. “That was a purely anti-Semitic attack.”
At least 15 people were killed and 40 injured in the Bondi Beach shooting. One of the two suspected gunmen—a 50-year-old father—was killed in a shootout with police, while his 24-year-old son survived and remains in custody at a hospital. The pair lived in Sydney’s western suburbs, about 30 miles from Bondi Beach.
Trump also praised a bystander who intervened during the attack and managed to disarm one of the shooters, despite being seriously wounded.
“In Australia, it’s been a very, very brave person who went and attacked frontally one of the shooters and saved a lot of lives,” Trump said. “He’s right now in the hospital pretty seriously wounded, so great respect to that man.”
The president further expressed condolences for Americans affected by an ISIS attack in Syria.
“I just want to pay my respects to the families,” Trump said. “We also had three injured, but two of them are already out of the hospital, and one’s going to be okay. But we lost three.”
The Pentagon confirmed that two U.S. Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed, and three others injured, during an ambush by an ISIS gunman in central Syria on Dec. 13. U.S. forces were in the area supporting counter-ISIS and counterterrorism operations.
Trump said interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa was “devastated” by the attack and pledged retaliation against those responsible. Syrian authorities announced on Dec. 14 that five suspects had been arrested.
“In Syria, there will be a lot of damage done to the people that did it,” Trump said. “They got the individual person, but there’ll be big damage done.”
“So, it was a rough day,” the president added.
The First Lady also shared her condolences, saying her thoughts were with families affected by the violence.
“My thoughts and prayers go to the families of the people who lost their loved ones around the world in this difficult time,” she said. “We are celebrating Christmas here, but my heart is with them and what they’re going through.”
Meanwhile, the FBI said Sunday that a person of interest has been detained in connection with the Brown University shooting.
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