US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flies to Israel in show of solidarity and to prevent a bigger war in the Middle East: ‘The United States has Israel’s back’
- Foreign Minister flies to Israel, pledges all the help it needs to defeat Hamas after death toll passes 1,200
- He arrives as Iran-backed Hezbollah is once again exchanging fire with troops on Israel’s border with Lebanon
Anthony Blinken said his simple message was that ‘the United States has Israel’s back’ as he flew off to meet its leaders last night.
The secretary of state became the most senior US official to visit the country since Saturday’s Hamas terror attack that left more than 1,200 Israelis dead.
The death toll in Gaza has also reached nearly 1,200, the Palestinian health ministry said overnight after four days of relentless Israeli airstrikes on the Hamas-controlled territory.
But Blinken insisted he would not try to limit the Israeli counterattack ahead of a widely expected invasion of the densely populated enclave.
“We know that Israel will take all the precautions it can, just as we would, and again that’s what separates us from Hamas and terrorist groups that engage in the most heinous kinds of activities,” he told reporters as he left.
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken vowed ‘the United States has Israel’s back’ as he became the most senior US official to visit the country since the October 7 attack
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week found himself heading a new government of national unity in response to the attack by Hamas
Palestinian officials have said the death toll in Gaza is already close to 1,200 ahead of an expected Israeli ground invasion
The foreign minister will offer further military support when he meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a second US carrier group was ordered to the region.
But he will also try to prevent the conflict from spreading after Israeli forces again exchanged artillery fire with Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants across the Lebanese border to the north.
“We will reiterate the very strong message that President Biden has delivered to any country or any party that may be trying to take advantage of this situation, and that message is not.”
‘The United States has Israel’s back.
“We have their back today, we’ll have it tomorrow, and we’ll have it every day. And we will always stand resolutely against terrorism.
‘Not since Isis have we seen this kind of depravity and we will continue to stand resolutely against it.
“Already significant military assistance requested by Israel is on the way, it is on top of everything we have done for years.
“There will be further requests and we have already worked closely with Congress on this and we look forward to continuing to do so so that Israel has what it needs.
America’s top diplomat was already working the phones in an effort to pressure Hamas to release about 150 hostages it took from Israel in its deadly cross-border attack.
He has spoken with leaders in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates and is expected to visit at least some on his trip to the Middle East.
But critics say the unprovoked attack is a symptom of years of neglect in the region that have allowed the US to catch up.
“The attack by Hamas is a reminder of the perception of an American absence or lack of commitment to the region that some actors may interpret and do things they should not do,” said Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute.
