US Biden Visits Only Israel This Time... Jordan 4-Party Summit Canceled

Jordan "Now Only Ceasefire Talks Matter"
Gaza Hospital Airstrike Seems to Have Impacted

U.S. President Joe Biden has decided to cancel his planned visit to Jordan alongside Israel, which is at war with the Palestinian armed faction Hamas.

The originally planned four-party summit involving the United States, Jordan, Egypt, and Palestine was canceled as the situation rapidly escalated following an airstrike on a hospital in the Gaza Strip that killed over 500 Palestinian residents.

According to The Guardian and other sources on the 17th (local time), the White House announced, "After consulting with King Abdullah II of Jordan and considering that Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority, declared a national day of mourning, President Biden has decided to postpone his visit to Jordan and the summit meetings with the two leaders and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi."

On the 17th (local time), U.S. President Joe Biden boarding Air Force One, the presidential aircraft, for a visit to Israel.
[Image source=UPI Yonhap News]

The White House added, "He (President Biden) looks forward to meeting with these leaders soon for direct talks and has agreed to maintain regular direct communication with them going forward."

The White House's announcement came after President Biden boarded Air Force One to visit Israel. The news of the four-party summit cancellation was announced by Jordan before the United States.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi announced on the 18th that the four-party summit with the United States, Egypt, and Palestine, which was scheduled to be held in Jordan, was canceled. Speaking to Al Jazeera, Minister Safadi said, "Right now, nothing is more important than stopping the war," adding, "Holding a summit at this point would not help anyone."

President Biden was scheduled to visit Israel and then Amman, Jordan, on the same day. After reaffirming U.S. support in Israel, he planned to move to Amman to meet with King Abdullah II of Jordan, President el-Sisi, and President Abbas to request efforts to prevent further escalation.

Foreign media report that the cancellation of the summit is related to the hospital airstrike incident in the Gaza Strip that occurred that day. It is reported that approximately 500 Palestinians were killed in the airstrike. The Guardian cited a senior official from the Palestinian Authority, stating that President Abbas decided not to attend the summit after the hospital airstrike and planned to return to the West Bank.

As voices strongly condemning the hospital airstrike grow louder, Israel denies responsibility, and a truth dispute over the cause of the explosion is expected to continue for some time. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed, based on their own system analysis and multiple intelligence sources, that the explosion was likely caused by a failed rocket launch by the Palestinian armed group Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.

In this situation, a White House official stated that President Biden expressed his deepest condolences for the innocent lives lost in the "Gaza Strip hospital explosion" and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.