Amid the unprecedented attack on Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was in the war-torn country with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had to take shelter in a bunker for five minutes on Monday. According to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, air raid sirens went off in Tel Aviv during their meeting.
"During the Secretary's meeting with PM Netanyahu and the war cabinet, the air raid sirens went off and they sheltered in a bunker for five minutes," the spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.
The deadly incident came as the US Secretary of State returned to Israel after meeting the Palestinian President and other Middle Eastern countries leaders, wherein he stressed to cool down the ongoing conflict between the two neighbouring nations.
The sirens signaling incoming rocket fire followed by the loud booms of Iran Dome air defenses intercepting rockets underscored an often-daily reality for Israelis, especially in the past week.
Blinken and his team got their first taste of the warning system
Blinken and his team got their first taste of the warning system and Iron Dome response as they drove from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, minutes after sirens sounded in both cities causing motorists to pull over and take cover.
Blinken’s motorcade did not slow or alter its route but sped quickly to the Israeli Ministry of Defence as motorists on the shoulders of the road returned to their vehicles.
Later, Blinken and his aides were meeting Netanyahu and his war cabinet at the prime minister’s office when sirens sounded again. Blinken, Netanyahu and the others took shelter in a bunker, according to State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
Others huddled in defence ministry stairwells until the all-clear was given.
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