DENVER (KDVR) — U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, for Colorado’s 6th Congressional District, spoke out Sunday about the war quickly unfolding in the Middle East.

“This is an outright attack on our allies in Israel,” Crow said.

Hamas militants fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of fighters into Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip in an unprecedented surprise early morning attack during a major Jewish holiday Saturday, killing dozens and stunning the country.

Israel said it is now at war with Hamas and launched airstrikes in Gaza, vowing to inflict an “unprecedented price.”

“We have to continue to stand by them,” Crow said of Israel on Sunday. “They are one of our strongest partners in the Middle East, and we need to be the support they need to respond to this and protect themselves.”

Crow said right now things are at a standstill when it comes to being able to send emergency aid to Israel. He said that’s all due to the absence of a house speaker.

“We need to have the vote, they need to select a speaker,” Crow said. “We need to reconvene, and we need to figure out what aids our Israel partners need right now.”

FOX31 asked Crow if he believed U.S. troops could be deployed to Israel to help. He said that isn’t how the U.S. has ever approached their partnership with Israel.

“They have one of the best military and security forces in the world,” Crow said. “We provide aid, military training and intelligence support, and we will continue to do that.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.