US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Wednesday that during his upcoming visit to Israel, he will work to extend the ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“Looking ahead to the next few days, we will focus on doing what we can and extending this pause so that we can release more hostages and deliver more humanitarian aid,” Blinken said in Brussels after a NATO meeting.
“We would like to see this pause extended because of what it has made possible – first and foremost, the hostages being released, coming home, being reunited with their families,” the top US diplomat explained.
Extending the pause is also in Israel’s interest, Blinken said.
“They’ve also been intensely focused on getting their people home, so we’re working on that,” he said.
During the visit, Blinken will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.
It will be Blinken’s third visit to the Middle East since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out.
The current ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will expire on Thursday morning.
Hamas wants to extend the ceasefire for another four days and is ready to release more hostages taken in Israel in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, a source close to the group confirmed on Wednesday.
2023-11-29 19:31:28
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