Middle East to be 'important theme' in Biden's UN General Assembly agenda: Official

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The soaring tensions in the Middle East will be an "important theme" in US President Joe Biden's meetings during this week's UN General Assembly, according to a senior administration official.

Biden and his senior officials "will be convening to talk about various aspects of the crisis, and what we can do to stabilize the situation," the official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

"He will address the Middle East, especially this very, very difficult year that we have all gone through," the official said.

"It's an opportunity to talk about what we have achieved and what we still need to do, given a situation that is just heartbreaking where hostages have not been returned, the humanitarian situation in Gaza, and as you know, just such a sensitive issue, such a delicate and dangerous situation between Israel and Lebanon right now," he added.

The official said that during his meetings, Biden will address "the need to strengthen our systems for providing humanitarian assistance, to end the brutal wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan."

The comments come as Biden prepares to address the General Assembly on Tuesday morning amid Israel’s escalating airstrikes on targets in Lebanon, retaliatory strikes by Hezbollah, and a deadlock in US-mediated talks to end Israel's war on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Israel dramatically increased its airstrikes across Lebanon on Monday, pounding the north and south in airstrikes it says are targeting Hezbollah. The official death toll surged dramatically throughout the day, with at least 492 confirmed deaths, including 35 children.

A total of 1,645 others have been injured and thousands have been forced to flee their homes amid the relentless bombardment.

The Israeli army on Monday evening claimed that it had hit over 1,100 Hezbollah targets in the last 24 hours in southern and eastern Lebanon. The military said it used more than 1,400 different munitions in some 650 sorties of its fighter jets over Lebanon.

“The Israeli aggression is a scheme aimed at destroying Lebanese villages, towns and eradicating all green spaces,” said Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

Hezbollah separately said its forces fired dozens of rockets at Israel’s Rafael Electronics Company, which is due north of Haifa, as well as the reserve headquarters of the Northern Corps and logistics base of the Galilee Formation in the Ami'ad camp.

This was the second time Hezbollah targeted military sites in Haifa, having previously fired missiles at the city on Sunday.

Tension has mounted between Hezbollah and Israel following a deadly airstrike on Friday that killed at least 45 people, including women and children, and injured dozens in a suburb of Beirut.

Hezbollah confirmed that at least 16 of its members, including senior leader Ibrahim Aqil and top commander Ahmed Wahbi, were killed in the Israeli airstrike.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, which has killed over 41,400 people, mostly women and children, following an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.

Months-long negotiations mediated by the US, Egypt and Qatar to end the war have hit an impasse in recent weeks as global attention has turned gradually to the unfolding crisis in Lebanon.