US Def Sec Austin To Deliver Joint Presser With Def Min Yoav Gallant

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant will deliver a press conference at around 09:30 ET 14:30 GMT: LIVESTREAM

• Semafor: “[Austin will] be pushing the [Israeli] government to outline benchmarks for its war effort while providing guidance on how the country can scale back its assault on Gaza to focus on targeted operations...”
• Austin’s Israel trip comes as the US grapples with declining security in the Red Sea. Semafor reports that the Pentagon is considering a direct strike on Houthi targets in Yemen, “...weighing a strike on the Houthis against their fears of potentially fuelling a broader war against Iran...”
• Pentagon spokesman Gen. Patrick Ryder said last week: “...our military will not hesitate to take action where we deem it necessary and appropriate, including to protect against actions in the maritime domain...”
• White House NSA Jake Sullivan met his UAE counterpart on Friday to discuss, “countering threats from the Houthis... in the Red Sea.”
• Axios reports, “CIA director Bill Burns will meet today in Warsaw with [Qatar PM] and [Mossad chief] to discuss a potential new deal to secure the release of Israeli hostages... they expect this round of negotiations to be much more difficult than the previous one...”
• Domestically, the White House is facing firmer calls from progressives to steer the war towards a stable post-war solution.
• Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), a close ally of Biden, said yesterday: “Netanyahu has done everything he can to undermine a positive vision for peace for Israel,” describing the Israeli leader as, “an exceptionally difficult partner.”