President Barack Obama told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he deeply regretted the loss of life in an Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla on Monday and urged him to quickly get to the bottom of the incident.

CHICAGO, May 31 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama canceled a Memorial Day speech near Chicago Monday, instead shepherding the gathered crowd out of a dangerous thunderstorm.

President Barack Obama told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he deeply regretted the loss of life in an Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla on Monday and urged him to quickly get to the bottom of the incident.

President Barack Obama voiced deep regret over Monday's deadly Israeli commando raids, and the White House said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed by phone to reschedule White House talks at the first opportunity.

With less than an hour until President Barack Obama pays his Memorial Day respects at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood , spectators are flowing in to the sound of patriotic John Philip Sousa marches.