US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a visit to Israel Thursday amid Israel’s ongoing war with terror group Hamas.
In a show of solidarity with Israel, the US is attempting to prevent the conflict’s escalation and participate in possible hostage negotiations with possibly dozens of US citizens held by Hamas in Gaza.
On Thursday, Blinken wrote on X: "I’m in Israel today to make one thing clear: The United States stands with Israel and its people, and we will always stand — resolutely — against terrorism.”
The visit is further messaging to Iran not to take matters further with its proxies on Israel’s Lebanon and Syrian borders as missiles have been fired in recent days taking the war to yet more fronts beyond Gaza, where Iran-backed Hamas has unleashed all-out war on Israel in the early hours of Saturday morning. Hundreds of militia infiltrated Israel through land, air and sea.
While celebrations of the assault on Israel have rung out in Tehran and US President Joe Biden said a deployment of military ships and aircraft closer to Israel should be seen as a signal to Iran to stay out of the conflict, in a powerful message, Biden said: ”We made it clear to the Iranians, be careful.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Blinken for the show of loyalty. “Mr. Secretary, you come here to a nation that is hurting, a nation of fighters, a nation of lions, a nation that is determined to defeat the forces of evil around us,” he said.
The war so far has seen at least 1,300 Israelis killed, with civilians including women and children burnt alive, murdered in their homes and a further 150 taken hostage in Gaza while over 3,000 have been wounded.
“President Biden was absolutely correct in calling this sheer evil,” Netanyahu added. “Hamas is ISIS and just as ISIS was crushed, so too will Hamas be crushed. And Hamas should be treated exactly the way ISIS was treated.”
Alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, several top figures attended the meeting with Blinken, including Foreign Affairs Minister Eli Cohen, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff and the Director of the National Security Council.
Among those attending for the American side were the Acting US Ambassador to Israel, the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and the Diplomatic Adviser.
Meanwhile, Syria's state television claimed Israel launched attacks on the main airports in the capital Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo on Thursday, believed to be stopping the import of Iranian weapons and capabilities to send to its proxies in the region.
Syria said the attacks damaged the runways and put both hubs out of service. Speaking to Syria’s state news agency, a Syrian military source said "bursts of missiles" hit the two airports at the same time, in what he said was a bid to distract the world's attention from Israel's war with Hamas militants in Gaza.
The attacks came a day before Iran's foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, was due to visit Syria, the timing not deemed a coincidence as Israel cuts off the regime’s influence and military might on its borders.