Biden says Gaza ceasefire could prevent expected Iranian response, Washington agrees $20 billion arms sale to Israel – BBC News Arabic

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, before the UN Security Council in New York, expressed the United States’ intention to “deter and counter any future aggression and avoid regional conflict.”

At the Security Council meeting in New York, Greenfield called for a cease-fire agreement, noting that “the broader regional conflict is not inevitable. “

She said, “The goal of the United States is to reduce escalation in the region, prevent any future attacks, and avoid regional conflict,” indicating that this “starts with ending an immediate cease-fire agreement and the release of the hostages in Gaza.”

But the Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, accused the Security Council of not doing enough to stop Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Mansour said, “Wake up, stop looking for excuses. Stop thinking that you can reach an understanding with the Israeli government so that it does not stop killing civilians by the thousands, causing famine, torturing prisoners, settling and annexing our land, while of this time. you call them, call them, and ask them to stop.”

Meanwhile, Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan said that Hamas used civilians as human targets in Gaza.

The United States has agreed to sell $20 billion worth of fighter jets and other military equipment to Israel, which is continuing its 10-month war in the Gaza Strip.

The Pentagon said deliveries would not begin for years.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken approved the sale of approximately $19 billion worth of F-15 aircraft and equipment, along with $774 million worth of tank weapons, more than $60 million worth of explosive mortar weapons, and $583 million worth of armored vehicles, according to Pentagon statement. .

Production of Boeing F-15 fighter jets is expected to take years, with deliveries starting in 2029. Deliveries of other equipment are expected to begin in 2026, according to the Pentagon.

The Pentagon said, “The United States is committed to Israel’s security, and it is important to America’s national interests to help Israel develop and maintain strong, ready self-defense capabilities.”

In a post on the X platform, Israel’s Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, thanked American officials for helping Israel to maintain “a high qualitative military standard in the region” and the commitment of the United States to Israel’s security.

This comes as Hamas announced the bombing of the Israeli city of Tel Aviv with two missiles, on Tuesday, for the first time in months, in response to recent Israeli raids on the Gaza Strip.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, said in a statement, “Recently, we bombed the city of Tel Aviv and its suburbs, with two M90 missiles, in response to the Zionist massacre against civilians and the deliberate displacement of our people.”

The last announcement by Hamas about the bombing of Tel Aviv with missiles was last May.

There were no reports of casualties in Israel. The Israeli army said that two rockets were fired from Gaza, one of which fell into the sea and the other did not reach Israeli territory.

The Israeli army said in a statement, “A rocket launch was detected from the Gaza Strip, which landed in the sea area in the middle of the country, and warnings were not activated according to established policy.”

The statement said, at the same time, “another missile was fired that did not violate Israel’s sovereignty.”

In Gaza, medics said Israeli airstrikes killed 19 Palestinians in the central and southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday.

This comes as a result of the extreme state of alert that Israel is experiencing, with the expectation of a military response from Iran and its arms in the region, especially Hezbollah in Lebanon, to the assassination of the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran.