U.S. President Joe Biden still plans to continue his Israel visit, although it is very physically and politically risky. He announced this effort after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invited him over the weekend.
After that, the American leader showed a strong interest in flying to Israel despite the worsening war against Hamas terrorists. Now, here's why this risky trip is critical during the ongoing Israeli-Hamas conflict.
Joe Biden's Israel Visit Both Physically, Politically Risky
According to the New York Times, the Israel trip of Biden comes with serious physical and political risks. This was evident on Monday, Oct. 16, when U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the Middle Eastern nation.
While he was there, sirens, which are used as warnings for incoming missiles or rockets, went off. This happened when Blinken was having a meeting with Netanyahu and his war cabinet at a military base.
Because of this, the U.S. official, as well as his hosts, were rushed to a bunker. They remained there for five minutes before continuing their discussions.
Despite what happened to Blinken, National Security Council's spokesman, John F. Kirby, claimed that Tel Aviv already has low physical risks.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden usually shares how he feels comfortable when visiting Israel. This was seen in one of his trips back in 2022. During that trip, Netanyahu was out of power, but it didn't bother POTUS.
With the current plans of Joe Biden, it looks like he is still comfortable visiting the Middle Eastern country despite the civilian casualties and mass destructions caused by the counterattacks of both the Israel Defense Forces and Hamas terrorists.
As of writing, Biden is still scheduled to take his flight to Israel on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
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Importance of Joe Biden's Israel Visit
CNN reported that although the risks of Joe Biden's Israel trip are not something to be taken lightly, his decision to visit the country is important.
This is because it could become a drastic show of support for one of the top allies of the United States. Aside from this, Biden's upcoming visit is also expected to send a strong warning to other countries not to take advantage of the ongoing war.
However, there are some downsides. For example, experts warned that if Biden continues supporting Israel, the United States will be linked to the violent actions of IDF in Gaza, which killed civilians.
As of writing, people are divided when it comes to supporting Israel and Gaza. Some individuals argue that Palestinians deserve what they are experiencing because of the deadly Hamas attack on Oct. 7.
On the other hand, others argued that Israel should think about the innocent civilians in Gaza since they are just among the victims of the ongoing war.
