It has been reported that President Joe Biden declined an invitation from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pay a "solidarity visit" in the wake of the horrendous terrorist assaults carried out by Hamas.

An official from the government stated that President Biden is now debating whether or not to visit Israel in the near future, as Breitbart News reported.

“After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office leaks that the premier invited US President Joe Biden to pay a solidarity visit to Israel following Hamas’s massive assault, White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson says, ‘We have no new travel to announce,'” the Time of Israel reported.

Speculation About the Decision

The reason Biden declined the trip remains unclear at this time.

The relationship between the president and Netanyahu has been fraught since Netanyahu assumed office. A White House meeting was not scheduled until September of this year.

According to a previous Breitbart News report, earlier this year, Biden declined to extend the traditional White House invitation to Netanyahu,

The administration had an objection first to the prime minister's proposed judicial reforms and then to the presence of far-right parties in Netanyahu's coalition.

However, when Israel's ceremonial president, Isaac Herzog, visited the White House in July, the snub drew concerns and criticism, and Biden appeared to reconsider, although he would not commit to a visit.

In recent weeks, both parties have toned down their rhetoric: Netanyahu has been vocal about pursuing a compromise with the Israeli opposition on judicial reform, and Biden lauded the U.S.-Israel relationship at the time.

The Attack on Israel

Since the horrendous terrorist attack carried out by Hamas on Israel over the past weekend the United States has been overall outraged about the atrocity.

This attack has resulted in the deaths of over 1,400 people (the majority of them were civilians); President Biden has been vocal in his public support for the nation's right to defend itself.

Last week, he made the statement, “If the United States experienced what Israel has experienced, our response would be swift, decisive, and overwhelming,” he said last week.

The comments were made in reference to the Israeli occupation.

The president referred to the terrorist act carried out by Hamas as a "violation of every code of human morality."

He also pointed out that the organization's "stated purpose of being is to kill Jews" and that Hamas' techniques brought back memories of historical attempts to carry out the "genocide of the Jewish people."