NYC mayor heads to Israel to 'show his support'
Bloomberg to spend Sunday meeting with mayors of Sderot, Ashkelon and with New Yorkers who have moved to Israel
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is heading to Israel along with police Commissioner Raymond Kelly and New York Rep. Gary Ackerman.
Spokesman Andrew Brent said the mayor "is going in order to show his support for Israel."
The trip comes as Israel launches a ground offensive in Gaza following eight days of punishing airstrikes that failed to halt militant rocket attacks on Israel.
Bloomberg, who is Jewish, is scheduled to spend Sunday meeting with the mayors of Sderot and Ashkelon and with New Yorkers who have moved to Israel. He's expected to be back in New York by Monday morning.
The mayor has already voiced his support for Israel in recent days, saying he believes Israel has a right to defend itself.
The US State Department issued a statement Saturday saying it was working toward a ceasefire between Israel and the armed Palestinian groups in Gaza that would bring an end to the continued rocket fire on the Jewish state.
Cautious statements from the State Department and the White House voiced concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, but did not directly criticize Israel for moving ground forces into Gaza.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said "it's obvious the ceasefire should take place as soon as possible," but it has to be sustainable and cannot allow Hamas to continue to launch rockets out of Gaza.
