'It's a shame that Hamas has allowed this to occur,' US says of Israeli attacks on Gaza

US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters on Wednesday that the US will "stand with Israel in every circumstance" and that it is "a shame that Hamas has allowed" the war on Gaza to resume.

"We deplore the loss of life, as do the Israelis. These are things that are happening that none of us want to continue. And so it's always.... difficult, but those conversations are ongoing, and of course, we stand with Israel in every circumstance. They are our ally," Bruce said of the last 24 hours in Gaza, where some 450 Palestinians were killed due to Israeli attacks. 

"President Trump has one term, and his focus has clearly been peace on this planet in every single fashion," she added. "He's known to get results. He's known to be serious. And we're seeing it move forward. So it's a shame that Hamas has allowed this to occur."

Bruce repeatedly pointed to Hamas's rejection of the US envoy's "bridge proposal", which would have seen Israel get back all its captives from Gaza, but Hamas maintained that all parties should have moved on to the second phase of the ceasefire deal as originally agreed, with the built-in captive swaps. 

"It was not a dynamic that was clearly going to end well in their rejecting it, but they did so anyway. And it's a horrible result of more decisions by Hamas that continue the suffering," Bruce told reporters.