Washington | US President Joe Biden’s top aides scrambled on Sunday (Monday AEDT) to reaffirm their commitment to the idea of potential normalisation of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, even as Israel prepares for the start of a full-scale war against Palestinian militants.

On several US talk shows, Secretary of State Antony Blinken cast normalisation as a choice between regional peace and the terrorism carried out by Hamas, the militant group in Gaza.