US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is being hosted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. -AP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have sheltered in a bunker for five minutes when air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv during their meeting, the US State Department says.
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All the meeting participants have since moved out of the bunker, resumed their meeting and were going to a command centre at Israel's defence ministry to continue their discussions, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
The incident occurred as US President Joe Biden weighs a trip to the region himself amid an Israeli bombardment of Gaza after Hamas' deadly attack on Israel 10 days ago.
"During the Secretary's meeting with PM Netanyahu and the war cabinet, the air raid sirens went off and they sheltered in bunker for five minutes," Miller said.
Blinken returned to Israel after an intense series of visits with regional leaders to try to contain the Israel-Hamas conflict and secure humanitarian aid and safe passage for US citizens and civilians in Gaza.
