In a visit that represents an important show of American support for Israel, its largest ally in the Middle East, US President Joe Biden heads to Israel and Jordan tomorrow, Wednesday, 18/10/2023, at a time when Tel Aviv is preparing to escalate its offensive against the Islamic resistance movement (Hamas), which caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and raised fears of a wider conflict in the region, including Iran and its ally the Lebanese Hezbollah group and Syria.

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Edited by| Hugh Gey

 

Politic section -  CJ journalist

 

Washington - October,17,2023

 

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White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said that after visiting Israel, Biden will travel to Jordan to meet with King Abdullah, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Amid talk of a visit fraught with security risks, the commander overseeing US forces in the Middle East, General Michael "Eric" Corella, headed to Israel on an unannounced visit on Tuesday, saying that he hoped to ensure that its army gets what it needs.

In return, Israel tightened its blockade on the Gaza Strip, including restricting the entry of fuel, and bombarded the area with air strikes that killed thousands of Palestinians and displaced hundreds of thousands.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken concluded hours-long talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv early on Tuesday by announcing Biden's visit to Israel.

"The president will hear from Israel what it needs to defend its people while we continue to work with Congress to meet those needs,"Blinken told reporters.

He added that Biden will meet with Netanyahu, reaffirm Washington's commitment to Israel's security and receive a comprehensive summary of its goals and strategy in the war.

"He (the president) will hear from Israel how it will conduct its operations in a way that minimizes civilian casualties and helps the flow of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza in a way that does not benefit Hamas,"he said.

Diplomatic efforts so far have focused on getting aid into Gaza through the Rafah crossing with Egypt, the only route not controlled by Israel. Cairo said the crossing had not been officially closed but was inoperable due to Israeli strikes on the Gaza side.

The authorities in Gaza say that more than 2,800 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the seventh of this month, almost a quarter of them children, and that more than ten thousand injured are being treated in hospitals suffering from severe shortages of supplies.

This comes at a time when Israel is preparing for a ground offensive on Gaza that is expected to further worsen the humanitarian crisis in the Strip.

In the biggest sign yet that the war could spill over to a new front, Israel on Monday ordered the evacuation of 28 villages within two kilometers of the Lebanese border.

This coincided with information about the establishment of an operations room that includes the Popular Mobilization factions, the Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements in Gaza, the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Houthi Ansar Allah movement and the Iranian Quds Force.

While Israel is massing its forces on the Gaza border, it has demanded that more than a million people in the northern half of the Strip be displaced to the south, but Hamas has asked them to stay in their homes.

While tens of thousands have fled south, the United Nations says there is no way to move so many people without causing a humanitarian disaster.

The UN says two million Gazans have already been displaced from their homes. Electricity has been cut, drinking water is scarce and emergency generators in hospitals are running out of fuel.