Status: 18.10.2023, 10:21 a.m.
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U.S. President Joe Biden leaves for his trip to Israel. © Evan Vucci/AP/dpa
US President Biden visits Israel shortly after a devastating explosion at a hospital in the Gaza Strip. The incident makes the Democrat's already delicate trip even more difficult.
Tel Aviv - In the midst of a serious crisis in the Middle East, US President Joe Biden has arrived in Israel for a short visit. Biden landed in Tel Aviv on his government plane on Wednesday morning, where he was received by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as seen on the livestream of Netanyahu's office. In addition to a conversation with Netanyahu, Biden is also scheduled to meet with Israeli President Izchak Herzog, according to the U.S. government.
The US president's trip was overshadowed by a devastating explosion in a hospital in the Gaza Strip, which is believed to have left hundreds dead and injured. The incident, which occurred on Tuesday just before Biden's departure from Washington, dramatically exacerbated tensions in the region and fueled fears of an escalation of the conflict. The health authority, which is controlled by the Islamist Hamas, blamed the Israeli army. Israel's army, on the other hand, spoke of an errant rocket from the militant Palestinian organization Islamic Jihad, which was responsible for the accident. The information could not be independently verified.
Biden's team to advance enlightenment
Biden had reacted with dismay to the attack in Gaza in a written statement on Tuesday evening. He was "outraged and deeply saddened" by the explosion at the hospital and the horrific loss of life it caused, it said. He had instructed his team to gather more information about the exact course of the incident.
During his visit to Israel, Biden also wants to ask "tough questions," said John Kirby, communications director of the U.S. government's National Security Council, during the flight. Among other things, Biden wants to hear more about Israel's goals and plans in the coming days and weeks. The U.S. president will also make it very clear that the U.S. does not want the conflict to escalate, it said.
Following his brief visit to Israel, Biden originally planned to travel to Jordan to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan's King Abdullah II. Jordan canceled the meeting in consultation with the U.S. delegation, Kirby said. Abbas will not travel because of a three-day mourning after the explosion. Biden will talk to Abbas and al-Sisi on the return flight.
In Tel Aviv, Biden will also meet Israeli rescue workers and talk to families who have lost loved ones or whose family members have been abducted by Hamas, according to the U.S. government. Biden is also planning a public statement during his visit, it said.
A week ago on Saturday, Hamas terrorists carried out a massacre of Israeli civilians in border towns and at a music festival. It was the worst bloodbath in Israeli history. More than 1400,199 people were killed in the incident and in further bloodshed in the days that followed. Hamas members also abducted at least <> people, including U.S. citizens. The Israeli Air Force attacked targets in the Gaza Strip in response to the massacre, and Israel is expected to take further military action against Hamas. Dpa