WASHINGTON, July 25. /TASS/. The US administration intends to continue pushing for an end to Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip, the US leader said in his address to the nation.

"I am going to keep working to end the war in Gaza. Bring home all of the hostages and bring peace and security to the Middle East and end this war," Biden said, addressing fellow citizens from the Oval Office on the occasion of his withdrawal from the upcoming presidential election.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking over 240 hostages, including women, children and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians before the crisis, and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes have also been reported on the West Bank.