Washington:
President Joe Biden on Monday considered an invitation to visit his close US ally Israel to show support in its war against Hamas, abruptly canceling a domestic political trip to meet with his national security team.
Biden, 80, was due to visit Colorado to continue his 2024 re-election campaign but stayed at the White House for briefings at the last minute amid growing fears that the conflict could spread.
The White House confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had invited Biden after the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel that killed more than 1,400 people, but said there were no travel plans yet.
The timing of a visit would be highly sensitive, with Israel preparing to launch a ground invasion of Hamas-ruled Gaza and bombarding it with air and artillery strikes that the Health Ministry says have killed at least 2,750 people.
A trip to Israel would also entail security risks. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was taken to a bunker on Monday after air raid sirens went off as he visited Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were “briefed by their national security team on the latest updates in the wake of Hamas’s horrific attack in Israel and the resulting conflict in Gaza,” the White House said.
CIA chief Bill Burns, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan led the briefing, which was also joined by Biden’s chief of staff, Jeff Zients, he said, publishing on social media a photo of the group who was sitting in the Oval. Office.
– ‘Extremists‘-
Biden has repeatedly pledged strong support for his close US ally Israel, but has also increasingly emphasized the need to protect civilians amid Israel’s bombardment and siege of Gaza.
Biden also spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday and they agreed on the need to “not allow the circle of conflict to expand,” the Egyptian presidency said.
They also discussed “protecting civilians and providing humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously spoke with both Netanyahu and Sisi about the situation, the Kremlin said.
Israel has ruled out a temporary ceasefire to allow relief supplies or foreigners to enter the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza, the only border crossing not controlled by Israel.
The White House said that in addition to his phone call with Sisi, Biden spoke with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is scheduled to visit Egypt and Israel, and with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby previously confirmed US reports that Netanyahu had asked Biden to come to Israel.
“With regard to Israel, there was an invitation from the Prime Minister, but again, there is no travel to speak to at this time,” Kirby told CNN.
Democrat Biden and right-wing leader Netanyahu once had rocky relations but partially mended ties in New York in September — and since the Hamas attacks, Biden has offered nothing but support.
The United States has also sent two aircraft carriers to the region, while Biden has warned Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah not to get involved.
Biden would travel to Colorado to visit a wind turbine factory to trumpet the economic revival and pro-environmental messages at the heart of his 2024 re-election campaign.
The visit would be postponed, the White House said.
Biden visited another war zone in February – Ukraine, which was invaded by Putin’s Russia – in a high-risk trip prepared in total secrecy. He last visited Israel in July 2022.
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