Cory Booker "able to safely depart" Israel after surprise Hamas attack in Gaza

Sen. Cory Booker safely departed Israel on Sunday after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack against the country, according to his spokesperson.

The New Jersey Democrat and his staff were in Jerusalem when Hamas began carrying out its large-scale offensive against Israel "and sheltered in place for their safety," his spokesperson Maya Krishna-Rogers said in a statement Sunday afternoon.

"We are grateful that Sen. Booker and our colleagues were able to safely depart Israel earlier today," she said.

Booker, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, arrived in Israel on Friday for several days of meetings ahead of a summit on regional economic integration in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, which he was supposed to participate in, his office said.