Biden will visit Israel to affirm solidarity after Hamas attack, focus on Gaza aid in Jordan

President Biden is making a high-stakes, high-risk trip to the Middle East as the Israel-Hamas war threatens to spark a regional conflagration

President Biden
Biden will also meet with the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and Palestine during his trip
(Image credit: Kyle Mazza / Anadolu via Getty Images)

President Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday "to stand in solidarity in the face of Hamas' brutal terrorist attack," Biden tweeted Monday night. "I'll then travel to Jordan to address dire humanitarian needs." He will meet in Amman with Jordan's King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said.

The Biden administration has been sending military supplies to Israel, reiterating that Tel Aviv has a right and duty to go after Hamas, and trying to prevent the conflict from spreading into a regional conflagration. Biden and other U.S. officials have also stressed to Israeli leaders "that once Israel is seen blowing up buildings and triggering Palestinian casualties, public sentiment around the world could change dramatically," The New York Times reported. "It would focus less on the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, with its scenes of burned bodies and massacred children, and more on the brutality of the response." 

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.