US Vice President Joe Biden will pay a crucial visit to Israel as that nation gets ready to intensify an offensive against Hamas that has sparked a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and stoked concerns about a wider clash with Iran.
Joe Biden visit Israel: Following the bloodiest day in Israel’s 75-year history on October 7, when Hamas militants massacred 1,300 people during a rampage across southern Israeli towns, Biden’s visit will be a significant demonstration of US support for the country’s top Middle Eastern ally.
In response, Israel tightened its siege on the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, prohibiting the importation of gasoline among other things, and pounded the region with airstrikes that resulted in the deaths of thousands of Palestinians and the displacement of hundreds of thousands more.
Following many hours of discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv early on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that Biden would travel to Israel.
“The president will hear from Israel what it needs to defend its people as we continue to work with Congress to meet those needs,” Blinken stated to reporters.
According to Blinken, Biden would meet with Netanyahu, reiterate Washington’s support to Israel’s security, and receive a thorough briefing on its war objectives and strategy.
“(The) president will hear from Israel how it will conduct its operations in a way that minimises civilian casualties and enables humanitarian assistance to flow to civilians in Gaza in a way that does not benefit Hamas,” Blinken stated.
Blinken added that he and Netanyahu had decided to create a strategy to deliver relief to the inhabitants of Gaza. He said nothing more specific.
According to US national security spokesman John Kirby, after visiting Israel, Biden would go to Jordan to meet with King Abdullah, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
“Recent Developments in Gaza: High Casualties, Abducted Israelis, and Negotiation Hints by Hamas”
According to Gazan authorities, more than 2,800 people have died in Israeli attacks since October 7—about a quarter of them children—and over 10,000 people have been injured. These hospitals are severely low on supplies and cannot treat the injured.
According to Israeli sources, in addition to the casualties it caused, Hamas reportedly took some 199 hostages back into Gaza.
Indicating that it may try to use the Israelis it abducted on October 7 as negotiating chips to achieve the release of Palestinian detainees, a prominent Hamas commander claimed on Monday that the group “has what it needs” to free all Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Khaled Meshaal, a Hamas official, made comments about the prisoners, including Israelis and non-Israelis. The organization’s armed wing separately declared that they considered the non-Israelis as “guests” and indicated that they would release them “when circumstances allow.”
On Monday, an unnamed medical professional attended to the damaged arm of a French-Israeli captive in a video published by Hamas.
“At the age of 21, Mia Schem introduced herself and urgently requested to be sent back to her family.”
‘LONG-TERM WAR’ WARNING FROM IRAN
The United States is attempting to prevent a wider regional conflict involving Iran, its Lebanese partner Hezbollah, and Syria. Biden’s travel is an uncommon and hazardous decision, signalling American support for Netanyahu. As Israel prepares to launch a ground attack in Gaza, experts predict that this action will worsen the humanitarian crisis in the region.
Israeli actions in Gaza would have repercussions, the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on state television, threatening “preemptive action” by the “resistance front” in the coming hours.
Iran describes the nations and forces in the region that are hostile to Israel and the United States as a resistance front.
“All options are open and we cannot be indifferent to the war crimes committed against the people of Gaza,” Amirabdollahian stated. “The resistance front is capable of waging a long-term war with the enemy.”
“Last week, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, praised Israel for enduring an “irreparable” military and intelligence defeat in the Hamas attack on Israel, even though he claimed that his country was not engage in it.”
On Monday, Israel ordered the evacuation of 28 towns in a 2-km-deep (1.2-mile) zone close to the Lebanese border, providing the clearest indication yet that the battle may shift to a new front.
THE VICTORY WILL COME IN TIME
The only route not under Israeli control, the Rafah crossing with Egypt, has been the focus of diplomatic efforts to bring aid into Gaza. Cairo claimed that, despite Israeli attacks on the Gaza side making the Rafah crossing inaccessible, it was not officially block.
Since the strikes on Israel, the US has sent two aircraft carriers and their auxiliary ships to the eastern Mediterranean. US officials reported that the ships were meant to serve as a deterrent to prevent the conflict from spreading.
Army General Michael “Erik” Kurilla, the head of Central Command, who is responsible for directing American forces in the Middle East, visited Israel on Tuesday without prior notice, claiming he wanted to make sure the Israeli military had what it needed.
Even if Hamas has instructed them to remain put, Israel has instructed more than a million residents in the northern half of the enclave to flee to the southern portion for their protection as it amasses troops on Gaza’s border.
The United Nations claims there is no possible to move so many people without triggering a humanitarian catastrophe, despite the fact that tens of thousands have moved south.
A million Gazans, according to the UN, have already been evicted from their homes. Sanitary water is in short supply, there is no power, and hospital emergency generator fuel is running low.
Russian President Vladimir Putin informed Netanyahu on Monday that Moscow wished to assist in preventing a humanitarian catastrophe. On Monday, a resolution proposed by Russia for the 15-member UN Security Council that would have demanded a humanitarian truce fell short of receiving the necessary nine votes.
Netanyahu advised Israelis to get ready for a protracted conflict.
“At this time, our only goal is to unify our efforts and advance towards victory. Because success would take time, you need to be persistent in this, he said on Monday to the Israeli Knesset.
Additionally, I want to warn Iran and Hezbollah not to put us to the test in the north. Avoid making the same error you did previously. Because the cost you will incur now is substantially higher.