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WH Invites Israel Officials to US      03/28 06:13

   Talks have restarted aimed at bringing top Israeli officials to Washington 
to discuss potential military operations in Gaza, after Prime Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu canceled a planned visit this week because he was angry about the 
U.S. vote on a U.N. cease-fire resolution, the White House said Wednesday.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Talks have restarted aimed at bringing top Israeli 
officials to Washington to discuss potential military operations in Gaza, after 
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a planned visit this week because he 
was angry about the U.S. vote on a U.N. cease-fire resolution, the White House 
said Wednesday.

   "So we're now working with them to find a convenient date that's obviously 
going to work for both sides," said press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

   No date has been finalized yet. One U.S. official said strategic affairs 
minister Ron Dermer and national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi would be among 
the delegation to come to Washington. The official were not authorized to speak 
publicly about the sensitive discussions and spoke to The Associated Press on 
condition of anonymity.

   An Israeli official said the White House had reached out with the goal of 
setting a new meeting. The official was not authorized to talk to the media and 
spoke on condition of anonymity. Netanyahu's office said the prime minister 
"did not authorize the departure of the delegation to Washington."

   The prime minister canceled the trip this week after the U.N. vote to demand 
a cease-fire in Hamas-run Gaza; the U.S. abstained from the vote but did not 
veto it. Netanyahu accused the United States of "retreating" from a "principled 
position" by allowing the resolution to pass without conditioning the 
cease-fire on the release of hostages held by Hamas.

   The delegation to the U.S. was meant to discuss a promised ground invasion 
of the southern Gaza city of Rafah, which is overflowing with displaced 
civilians. Israel has so far rejected American appeals to call off the planned 
operation.

   Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant was already in Washington by the time 
Netanyahu canceled the trip by other officials. Gallant met with Biden's 
national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and 
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The Gaza operation was one of many topics they 
discussed.

   Netanyahu on Wednesday said his decision to cancel was meant to deliver a 
message to Hamas that international pressure against Israel will not prompt it 
to end the war without concessions from the militant group, an apparent attempt 
to smooth over the clash between the allies.

   Speaking to visiting Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., Netanyahu said the canceled 
visit "was a message first and foremost to Hamas: Don't bet on this pressure, 
it's not going to work."

   Netanyahu said the U.S. abstention on the U.N. vote was "very, very bad," 
and that it "encouraged Hamas to take a hard line and to believe that 
international pressure will prevent Israel" from achieving its war aims. Israel 
wants to destroy Hamas' military and governing capabilities and free the 
hostages taken by the militant group during its Oct. 7 attack against Israel.

   The U.S. abstention and Netanyahu's subsequent decision to cancel the 
delegation represented the strongest public dispute between the two allies 
since the war in Gaza began.

 
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