Biden’s Blinken posts—then deletes— call for cease-fire in Israel after talks with Turkey

"Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and I spoke further on Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel," the since-deleted post read, with Blinken adding that he encouraged Turkey’s "advocacy for a cease-fire and the release of all hostages held by Hamas immediately."

In a separate tweet that wasn’t deleted, Blinken said he and Fidan discussed "Hamas’ attacks on Israel. Israel has the right to defend itself, rescue any hostages, and protect its citizens."

The White House has since come out to say that this statement by Blinken “did not accurately reflect” the Biden administration's position in regards to Hamas' attacks against Israel.

Other posts from Blinken over the weekend revealed talks with other Middle Eastern leaders, including Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, with Blinken reiterating the "urgent need to halt the Hamas attacks."

The attack began at daybreak on Saturday, with Hamas entering into Israel from Gaza by land, air, and sea. Hundreds have been brutally murdered, with more injured or captured by Hamas terrorists, and Israel has declared war, with the country's defense minister ordering "a complete siege on the Gaza Strip."

In a Sunday interview, Blinken said in regards to Iranian funds that were unfrozen as part of a prisoner swap that some say has since been used to back the attack, "Iran has unfortunately always used and focused its funds on supporting terrorism, on supporting groups like Hamas."

"And it’s done that when there have been sanctions, it’s done that when there haven’t been sanctions, and it’s always prioritized that."

This story was updated to reflect additional information from the Biden administration regarding Blinken's comments during the call with Turkey.