WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate could confirm President Joe Biden's nominee to be ambassador to Israel, former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, as soon as next week, Senate aides said on Monday, as Washington responded to a devastating weekend attack on the Jewish state by Hamas gunmen.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee announced that it would hold Lew's confirmation hearing on Oct. 18.

The aides said Democrats, who hold a slim majority in the chamber, hoped to vote to confirm Lew as soon as Thursday, Oct. 19.

Biden nominated Lew for the position in September, a move that won immediate praise from his fellow Democrats.

Because he served as a cabinet secretary, Lew has undergone Senate confirmation before.

In addition to serving as Treasury secretary, Lew under former Democratic President Barack Obama was a White House chief of staff and deputy secretary of state for management and resources.

The position has been vacant since July, when Tom Nides left the post.

(This story has been refiled to clarify the date in paragraph 3)

U.S. Senate moves quickly toward confirming Lew as ambassador to Israel