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Added on the 19/07/2016 19:00:00 - Copyright : RT Ruptly EN
The United States warns against an "escalation" in Lebanon after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of an operation, saying conflict would only harm Israeli security. "We don't want to see that escalation of the conflict which would just lead to further loss of life from both Israelis and the Lebanese people and would greatly harm Israel's overall security and stability in the region," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE
"I can confirm that the United States provided Ukraine with long-range ATACMs at the President's direction," US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel tells reporters. Biden "quietly directed his national security team to send ATACMs to Ukraine for use inside Ukrainian sovereign territory in February. They started moving as part of the military aid package we announced on March 12th," Patel adds. SOUNDBITE
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller says a "full-scale invasion" of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip by Israeli forces "would be a mistake." SOUNDBITE
The United States warns Israel that staging a military push into the southern Gaza city of Rafah without proper planning would run the risk of becoming a "disaster." State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel says Washington has "yet to see any evidence of serious planning for such an operation," adding: "To conduct such an operation right now with no planning and little thought in an area" where one million people are sheltering "would be a disaster." SOUNDBITE
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel "in the coming days to engage our Israeli partners directly about the situation on the ground" as Israeli forces conduct a war against Hamas following an attack on Israel. SOUNDBITE
The US State Department thanks Beijing for allowing detained US soldier Travis King to leave North Korea through Chinese territory. "We thank Sweden and the People's Republic of China for their assistance in facilitating that transfer," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE