WASHINGTON -- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed Wednesday to Israel in a show of solidarity after a bloody attack by Hamas, with Washington closing ranks with its ally as it launched heavy retaliation on the Gaza Strip.
In a departure from usual US calls for restraint when violence erupts overseas, Biden and his administration have made clear they support Israel's right to an overwhelming response. Blinken will "reaffirm the United States' solidarity with the government and people of Israel," Miller said. Blinken will head from Jerusalem to Jordan, a close US partner which has a peace treaty with Israel and historically has been concerned over shake-ups in the Palestinian territories.Watch more News on iWantTFC Further complicating the policy options for both the United States and Israel is that Hamas has taken large numbers of hostages and is threatening to kill them. Biden has said that an unspecified number of the hostages hold US citizenship.