Page 3 - ATODAY
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U.S. NEWS A3
Wednesday 9 March 2016
Biden arrives in Israel amid rash in Palestinian attacks
DANIEL ESTRIN claim that Prime Minister Former Israeli President Shimon Peres, right, and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden shake hands during
Associated Press Benjamin Netanyahu “sur- their meeting at the Peres Center for Peace in Jaffa. Tuesday, March 8, 2016.
JERUSALEM (AP) — Vice prised” the Obama ad-
President Joe Biden arrived ministration by canceling (AP Photo/Dan Balilty)
in Israel on Tuesday for a a planned visit to Washing-
two-day visit that is to in- ton, saying that the White
clude meetings with Israeli House knew Netanyahu
and Palestinian leaders as was considering not com-
Palestinians unleashed a ing. Netanyahu had been
wave of attacks that killed expected to visit later in
an American tourist near March on a trip coincid-
where Biden was visiting ing with a major pro-Israel
and wounded a dozen Is- group’s annual summit, but
raelis. his office said he would not
The American man, who travel because he did not
was not identified by wish to come at the height
name, was killed in a stab- of U.S. presidential prima-
bing spree in the port city of ries.
Jaffa in which a Palestinian The spat comes amid tense
attacker also wounded six relations with President
Israelis before he was shot Barack Obama in the last
and killed by Israeli forces. year of his presidency.
The attack took place as The White House said Israel
Biden was meeting with for- had proposed two dates
mer Israeli President Shimon for a meeting between the
Peres nearby, at the Peres leaders and the U.S. had
Center for Peace in Jaffa. offered to meet on one of
It was the latest bloodshed those days. “We were look-
in more than five months of ing forward to hosting the
near-daily Palestinian as- bilateral meeting,” said
saults on Israeli civilians and Ned Price, a spokesman for
security forces that show no the White House’s National
sign of abating. Along with Security Council.
the Jaffa assailant, three But Netanyahu’s office
other Palestinian attackers said Israel’s ambassador
in Tuesday’s assaults were to the U.S. had already in-
shot and killed by Israeli se- formed the White House
curity forces. last week there was a
“I notified the vice presi- “good chance” Netanya-
dent on the terrible inci- hu would not make the trip.
dent that took place just It said the ambassador
a few hundred meters told the White House there
away from here in Jaffa,” would be a final decision on
Peres said, standing next to Monday. That day, Israeli
Biden. “Terror leads to no- news reports erroneously
where.” reported that Netanyahu
“The majority of the people would not travel because
know there is no alternative he was unwilling to meet
to the two state solution ... with Obama. Netanyahu’s
and we shall follow with all office said it then informed
our strength and dedica- the White House directly
tion to make from it a new that Netanyahu would not
reality,” Peres added. be visiting.
“It is up to us, Israel and Netanyahu was invited to
the United States together, address a summit of the
to do everything we can staunchly pro-Israel group
in order to fight terror and AIPAC. An Israeli official,
bring an end to the blood- who spoke on condition of
shed and war,” Peres said anonymity because he was
in a statement released by not authorized to discuss
his office. the issue publicly, said Ne-
Biden’s office said he ex- tanyahu wanted to avoid
pressed his sorrow at the potential meetings with
tragic loss of American life presidential candidates
and offered his condo- at the summit. Netanyahu
lences to the family of the was accused of siding with
American citizen, as well as Mitt Romney in the 2012
wishes for a full and quick presidential campaign and
recovery for the wounded he appears wary of spark-
Israelis. ing any additional claims
Just ahead of the visit, Isra- of meddling in American
el disputed a White House politics.q
