Discussions will also center on “our commitment to fight anti-Israel actions, including unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state that rewards Hamas terrorism, and lawfare.” The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and at the International Court of Justice, Israel is defending itself against charges of genocide lodged by South Africa.
This will be Rubio’s second trip to Israel this year, following his visit in February as part of a multi-country tour of the Middle East.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Rubio said Washington was not happy about Israeli strikes that targeted Hamas terrorists in Qatar but emphasised the attack would not alter the strategic alliance.
"Obviously, we’re concerned that events last week, President Trump didn’t like the way it went down," said Rubio, in reference to the assassination attempt in Doha. "Sometimes things happen or come up in those relationships that perhaps we’re not 100 percent aligned with, or unhappy. But it’s not going to change the nature of our relationship with the Israelis. But we are going to have to talk about it. Primarily, what impact does this have" he added.
Despite the disagreement, Rubio stressed the importance of moving forward to figure out what comes next.
"At the end of the day, when all is said and done, there is still a group called Hamas, which is an evil group that still has weapons and is terrorizing; there are still 48 hostages that deserve to be released immediately, all at once; and there is still the hard work ahead of, once this ends, of rebuilding Gaza in a way that provides people a quality of life that they all want," he said.
Rubio is scheduled to hold a press conference with Netanyahu at 12 pm, followed by a joint visit to the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City at 2 pm.
While no official schedule has been published, Rubio is expected to depart from Israel on Tuesday to join US President Donald Trump’s delegation in the UK.
