President Biden is considering visiting Israel in the coming days – despite the threat of a full-scale ground invasion by the Middle Eastern country into Gaza.
The commander-in-chief has made no official travel plans to Israel as it enters its second week of war with Hamas, a senior administration official spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press Sunday.
Biden has strongly voiced support for US allies since the October 7 surprise attack by Hamas that killed more than 1,400 people, including at least 30 Americans.
However, he has also sought to restrain Israel from further escalating tensions by reoccupying Gaza.
“I think it would be a huge mistake,” Biden said during an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes that aired on Sunday.
“Look, what is happening in Gaza, in my view, is Hamas, and the extreme elements of Hamas do not represent all Palestinians. And I think it is a mistake for Israel to occupy Gaza again.”
Biden spoke at a dinner hosted by the Human Rights Campaign at the Washington Convention Center in Washington on Oct. 14. 2023. REUTERS
The president and his administration have refused to criticize Israel or the relentless bombing campaign that has killed hundreds of civilians, including women and children, in Gaza.
The Israeli government on Friday gave one million people living in the northern Gaza Strip 24 hours to evacuate before an expected attack on the country.
At least 70 Palestinians were killed and 200 injured when they were hit by airstrikes while trying to follow orders – an attack Israel denied.
An aerial view shows members of the media during a visit to Kibbutz Kfar Aza, after a deadly attack by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel on Oct. 15. 2023. REUTERS
At least 2,400 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has already been touring the Middle East last week trying to prevent a war with Hamas from sparking a wider regional conflict.
Blinken emphasized that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas attacks, but needs to take into account the cost of civilian lives when carrying out its counter-attack mission.
A scene of destruction after a deadly attack on a police station in the city of Sderot on the second day of the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.ZUMAPRESS.com
“I am confident that Israel will act under the rules of war,” Biden said on 60 Minutes.
“There are standards that democratic institutions and countries go through,” he said. “And I’m sure there will be an ability for innocent people in Gaza to have access to medicine and food and water.”
The White House also appointed David Satterfield, a former ambassador to Lebanon and Turkey, to lead US efforts to get humanitarian aid to “vulnerable people through the Middle East.” Satterfield is expected to arrive in Israel on Monday.
By Postal Wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
