Benny Gantz, a member of the Israeli war cabinet, plans to hold meetings this week with prominent figures in Washington. However, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is against the idea.
Vice President Kamala Harris, along with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, are all planned to have separate meetings with Gantz on Monday. Gantz, who serves as the chairman of the National Unity Party and is a political opponent of Netanyahu, will also meet with Brett McGurk, the coordinator for the Middle East on the National Security Council, on Monday. Gantz is also slated to have a meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday.
Gantz’s visit to Washington is taking place against Netanyahu’s will, an Israeli official confirmed to CBS News. The prime minister has ordered Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. and the Israeli Embassy to boycott Gantz’s meetings with Harris and Sullivan, even though it is customary for the ambassadors to appear with foreign leaders during visits.
The Biden administration has recently adopted a firmer stance towards Israel as the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 30,000 since the conflict began almost half a year ago. Gantz is currently heading to Washington for discussions on this matter.
airdrops of food aid into Gaza over the weekend. And Harris gave some of the administration’s most forceful remarks
On Sunday, there were calls for an urgent ceasefire between Gaza and Israel lasting six weeks.
For several weeks now, the United States has been advocating for a six-week ceasefire that would enable the release of more hostages. According to a high-ranking official in the U.S. government, this has been an ongoing effort.
over the weekend
Israel supported a proposal for a pause in violence and the release of hostages. However, Israeli news outlets reported that the government did not attend the negotiations on Sunday after Hamas refused to provide a comprehensive list of hostages who are still alive.
Contributing to the report was Margaret Brennan.
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Kaia Hubbard
Kaia Hubbard works as a politics reporter for CBS News Digital in Washington, D.C.