Israel-Hamas war: US lawmakers reject $17bn Israel aid bill

US lawmakers has rejected a standalone Israel aid bill which had been denounced by critics as a "cynical" bid to thwart a cross-party border security and foreign assistance package that would include aid for Ukraine.

Republicans in the House of Representatives had tabled the vote as an alternative to the Democrat-led bipartisan bill Sunday pairing aid for both Israel and Ukraine worth $118 billion (€109.63 billion).

But 167 Democrats voted no after President Joe Biden had threatened to wield his veto. The standalone bill was also opposed by 14 Republicans.

House Democratic leaders called the bill a "nakedly obvious and cynical attempt" to undermine the larger package, which ties the Israel cash to $60 billion of aid for Ukraine and $20 billion for US border security, but is currently deadlocked in Congress.

The vote was 250 to 180, falling short because it was introduced under a procedure requiring a two-thirds majority.

US Secretary of State Blinken arrives in Israel

The United States' top diplomat, Antony Blinken, arrived at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv late on Tuesday night.

Blinken has already held talks in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Qatar during what is his fifth crisis tour of the Middle East.

On Wednesday, he is expected to hold talks with senior Israeli officials in an attempt to seal a truce in the four-month old Gaza war.