Blinken Announces Biden Trip to Israel on Wednesday
Joe Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced after a marathon meeting (almost 8 hours) with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli war cabinet at the IDF’s Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv.
The White House followed with a statement that Biden will also visit neighboring Jordan afterward (statement at end of article.)
Blinken said the purpose of the visit is to “reaffirm the United States’ solidarity with Israel”, make clear Israel has the right and duty to defend itself and to send a “crystal clear message” to state and non-state actors looking to take advantage of the crisis to attack Israel: “Don’t.” Biden will also focus on securing the release of the hostages being held by Hamas,
