Biden Hosts Israeli Leader After One-Day Delay

WHITE HOUSE - After a delay of a day due to the crisis in Afghanistan, U.S. President Joe Biden hosted Israel's prime minister, Naftali Bennett, on Friday, discussing issues ranging from the plight of the Palestinians to Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions.

To ensure Iran never develops a nuclear weapon, Biden said at the White House, "we're putting diplomacy first and seeing where that takes us. But if diplomacy fails, we're ready to turn to other options." The president did not elaborate on those other options and declined to take questions following his and Bennett's Oval Office comments. "I was happy to hear your clear words that Iran will never be able to acquire a nuclear weapon and that you emphasize that we'll try the diplomatic route, but there's other options if that doesn't work out," the Israeli leader responded. "The first goal is to stop Iran on its regional aggression and start rolling it back into the box. And the second is to permanently keep Iran away from ever being able to break out the nuclear weapon."