also in washington, d.c., phyllis bennis, a fellow at the institute of policy studies think tank and sor to the jewish voice for peace organization. phyllis, let me start with you in washington. we have seen a visit for support from president biden to tel aviv , to israel, even after a massacre at a hospital in gaza. even at a time when the region is boiling. why is the u.s. so supporting -- so committed to supporting israel? phyllis: that is a long story and we do not have time to go into the history but the story today is the consequences of the visit. the bearhug diplomacy means unless there is a public call for a cease-fire, which i do not anticipate we will see, this visit will be seen -- and should be seen -- as a real endorsement of israel's continuing attack against gaza. there are likely to be vague references to urging israel not to violate international law or expressing some kind of concern for palestinian civilians, but the reality is the bombing is continuing, gaza is still under assault and threatened with a ground invasion. in that context, the violations of internatio