Murphy, Blumenthal, Van Hollen, Ossoff Travel to Lebanon, Israel, West Bank to Discuss Regional Security and Democracy Murphy, Ossoff to Hold Additional Meetings in Tunisia, Greece

August 30, 2021

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism, will lead a congressional delegation with U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) to discuss regional security and democracy. The four will travel to Lebanon, Israel, and the West Bank. Murphy and Ossoff will continue on to Tunisia and Greece.

The delegation's visit to Israel comes after the formation of a new government under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in June, and will be the first to travel to the country after President Biden met with Bennett at the White House last week. The delegation will also be the first to travel to Tunisia since the beginning of the political crisis there last month.

"New leadership and simmering crises dot the landscape of the Mediterranean right now," said the senators. "We look forward to speaking directly with key actors in the region, especially the new Israeli government and Palestinian leadership. This trip will also give us the chance to discuss the path forward to protect democracy in Tunisia and address the economic and political crisis in Lebanon. America must be a force for good in the Middle East and North Africa, and we look forward to a productive trip."

Additional details about the trip will be available in the coming days.

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