Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Kirya, the headquarters of the country’s Defense Ministry and central commander of the IDF, following Hamas’s unprecedented attack on the Jewish state.
“We’re here and we’re not going anywhere,” Blinken told Netanyahu as the two shook hands. The secretary also said that he was sorry to see the Israeli prime minister in such circumstances.
A short video showed the couple then sitting opposite each other on either side as a team of helpers.
Blinken landed in Tel Aviv shortly after 3 a.m. Eastern time, 10 a.m. local time. He was greeted on the tarmac by government officials who gave him warm hugs. The secretary did not provide any information when she arrived.
Before leaving the US, Blinken said his simple message was: “The United States stands with Israel.” In addition to talks with Netanyahu, he will also meet with members of his senior Cabinet as well as President Isaac Herzog.
Blinken will also meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday.
Blinken will be accompanied on his peacekeeping mission by his deputy chief of staff Tom Sullivan, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, deputy secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, special representative for Palestinian affairs Hady Amr and deputy special presidential envoy for hostage issues Steve Gillen.
“We’re here and we’re not going anywhere,” Blinken told Netanyahu as the two shook hands
Subsequent images broadcast in Israel showed Blinken sitting opposite Netanyahu alongside teams of aides
He was welcomed by Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen along with two other ministry officials, Michael Herzog, the US ambassador to the country, and Stephanie Hallett, the head of the US diplomatic mission to Israel.
A State Department official told the New York Times that Blinken planned to travel directly to Tel Aviv to begin his meetings. The Secretary will travel to Jordan after holding his meetings in Israel with King Abdullah II of Jordan.
The foreign minister was the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit the country since Saturday’s Hamas terror attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis.
The death toll in Gaza has also reached nearly 1,200, the Palestinian Health Ministry said last night, after four days of relentless Israeli airstrikes on the Hamas-controlled territory.
But Blinken insisted he would not try to contain the Israeli counterattack ahead of a widely expected invasion of the densely populated enclave.
“We know that Israel will take all possible precautions, just as we would, and that, again, is what sets us apart from Hamas and terrorist groups that engage in the most heinous activities,” he told reporters as he left .
The foreign minister will offer further military support when he meets Netanyahu after a second US aircraft carrier group was sent to the region.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as part of his diplomatic mission to the country
Before leaving the US, Blinken said his simple message was that “the United States has Israel’s back.”
Blinken’s visit was met with utmost caution as the bloody conflict rages on
But he will also try to stop the spread of conflict after Israeli forces again exchanged artillery fire with Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters across the Lebanese border to the north.
“We will reiterate the very strong message that President Biden has sent to any country or party that might try to take advantage of this situation, and that message is: Don’t do it.”
“The United States has Israel’s back.”
“We have their back today, we will have it tomorrow and we will have it every day.” And we will always stand firmly against terrorism.
“We have not seen this kind of depravity since Isis and we will continue to speak out strongly against it.”
“There is already significant military assistance requested by Israel on the way, in addition to everything we have been doing for years.”
“There will be further requests and we have already worked closely with Congress on this and look forward to continuing to do so so that Israel has what it needs.”
America’s top diplomat has already used the phones to try to pressure Hamas to release about 150 hostages it kidnapped from Israel in its deadly cross-border raid.
He has spoken to leaders in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates and is expected to visit at least some of them on his trip to the Middle East.
But critics claimed the unforeseen attack was a symptom of years of neglect in the region that had left the US playing catch-up.
“The Hamas attack is a reminder of the perception of an American absence or lack of commitment to the region that some actors may be interpreting and doing what they should not do,” said Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute.