[1/5] U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu make statements to the media inside The Kirya, which houses the Israeli Ministry of Defense, after their meeting in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday Oct. 12, 2023.
Blinken's trip also aims to send a deterrence message to Iran, which backs Hamas, to not get involved in the conflict.
An hour after landing in Tel Aviv, Blinken shook hands with Netanyahu and told the prime minister: "We're here, we're not going anywhere," footage from Netanyahu's office showed.
After Israel, Blinken will head to Jordan to meet with King Abdullah and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
Israel said on Thursday there would be no humanitarian break to its siege of the Gaza Strip until all hostages taken by Hamas were freed.
Persons:
Antony Blinken, Benjamin Netanyahu, Jacquelyn Martin, Benyamin Netanyahu, Blinken, Washington's, Netanyahu, we're, Israel, King Abdullah, Mahmoud Abbas, Washington, Joe Biden, Biden
Organizations:
Israel’s, Ministry of Defense, REUTERS Acquire, Israeli, Palestinian, State Department, Washington, Thomson
Locations:
Tel Aviv, Israel, TEL AVIV, Palestinian, Gaza, Iran, Jordan, Tehran, Washington, U.S