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Biden heads for Israel but Arab leaders meeting cancelled after Gaza hospital deaths Biden arrives in Israel after Arab leaders summit cancelled
(32 minutes later)
President Biden is traveling to Israel as it battles Hamas President Joe Biden was welcomed by Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv
US President Joe Biden is due to arrive In Israel later on Wednesday to express his solidarity and to discuss war plans with its leaders. US President Joe Biden has arrived in Israel to express his solidarity and discuss war plans with its leaders.
But his visit has been hugely complicated by a blast at a hospital in Gaza which is feared to have killed hundreds of Palestinians. The high-stakes trip was upended by a blast at a crowded Gaza City hospital on Tuesday in which hundreds of people are feared to have died.
The president sent his "deepest condolences" to the victims. The blast, which Palestinian officials and the Israeli military have blamed on each other, further stoked tensions.
A visit to Jordan to meet Arab leaders was cancelled amid international outrage over the deaths in Gaza. Mr Biden had planned to visit Jordan to meet Arab leaders but this was cancelled after the explosion.
Biden's visit to Israel is a high-stakes gamble The White House said the decision to call off the summit was "made in a mutual way", adding that Mr Biden would instead call the leaders of the Palestinian Authority and Egypt on his return flight to the US.
Mr Biden will meet Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in a "very small restricted bilateral meeting" as well as the Israeli war cabinet, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said. Mr Biden landed in Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning and was greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. The pair will hold a "very small restricted bilateral meeting" before the president meets the Israeli war cabinet.
The president will also meet first responders to the attack by the Hamas Palestinian militant group on Israel which left 1,300 Israelis dead on 7 October, and some of those who lost loved ones or whose family members are being held hostage, Mr Kirby said. Mr Biden will ask "tough questions" to better understand Israel's war aims, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.
Israel has asked the US for $10bn (£8.2bn) in emergency military aid, the BBC's US partner CBS News reports, quoting what it calls sources familiar with the request. "He'll be asking some tough questions but he'll be asking them as a friend," he told reporters, adding that the US was working to ensure humanitarian aid can enter Gaza.
The Hamas-led authorities in Gaza say 500 people died in the explosion at the Al Ahli hospital, which one doctor called "a massacre". ANALYSIS: Biden's visit to Israel is a high-stakes gamble
Mr Biden will also meet emergency workers who responded to the unprecedented attack by the Hamas Palestinian militant group on Israel which left 1,300 Israelis dead on 7 October. He will also meet some of those who lost loved ones or whose family members are being held hostage, officials said.
At least 3,000 people have been killed in retaliatory Israeli strikes on Gaza, according to health officials.
Israel has asked the US for $10bn (£8.2bn) in emergency military aid following the attack, the BBC's US partner CBS News reported, quoting what it called sources familiar with the request.
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The Hamas-led authorities in Gaza say 500 people died in the explosion at the Al Ahli hospital on Tuesday, which one doctor called "a massacre".
Hamas blamed Israel, calling it a "war crime". A spokesperson for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who is based in the occupied West Bank, accused Israel of a "heinous crime".Hamas blamed Israel, calling it a "war crime". A spokesperson for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who is based in the occupied West Bank, accused Israel of a "heinous crime".
But Israel said the blast had been caused by rockets misfired by another group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad. But Israel said the blast was caused by rockets misfired by another group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
"Our intelligence is reporting to us that apparently there was a rocket launched by Islamic Jihad..." Mark Regev, a spokesman for Mr Netanyahu, told BBC radio 4. "Our intelligence is reporting to us that apparently there was a rocket launched by Islamic Jihad," Mark Regev, a spokesman for Mr Netanyahu, told the BBC.
"And that their rocket was fired into Israel but dropped short and landed on the hospital, causing the destruction it did.""And that their rocket was fired into Israel but dropped short and landed on the hospital, causing the destruction it did."
The BBC is working to verify what caused the blast.The BBC is working to verify what caused the blast.
Watch: Chaos in Gaza City after hospital hitWatch: Chaos in Gaza City after hospital hit
Watch: Chaos in Gaza City after hospital hitWatch: Chaos in Gaza City after hospital hit
Mr Kirby said the president would be "asking tough questions" of Israeli officials. "He'll be asking them as a friend, as a true friend of Israel, but he will be asking some questions of them."
He added that 31 Americans had been killed in the Hamas attacks, while 13 in Israel remained unaccounted for.
At least 3,000 people have been killed in Israel's bombardment of Gaza, according to health officials.
More on Israel-Gaza war
Follow live: Latest updates
Explained: What's going on in Gaza and Israel, and why now?
History behind the story: The Israel-Palestinian conflict
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