Secretary of State Tony Blinken, who is visiting the Middle East, met with Arab foreign ministers in Amman, Jordan today (4th).
According to the media, Secretary Blinken discussed the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and plans to end the Israel-Hamas war with the foreign ministers of five countries, including Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, and Egypt, and the Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization. We discussed it.
Jordan’s Foreign Ministry said the talks were aimed at stopping Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip.
On this day, Secretary Blinken also met separately with Lebanon’s interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Previously, Secretary Blinken said at a press conference after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, Israel yesterday (3rd) that preventing the spread and expansion of the Israel-Hamas war is a ‘top priority’.
“We have been clear that the way Israel conducts its campaign to defeat Hamas is important,” Blinken said.
He continued, “It is important because it is the right and legal thing to do,” and “because if we do not do so, (this situation) will fall into the hands of Hamas and other groups.”
However, Secretary Blinken urged Israel to halt its military operations and allow more humanitarian aid to Gaza.
He emphasized that protecting Palestinian civilians was the ‘second priority’ of this visit to Israel.
Secretary Blinken officially proposed a temporary cessation of hostilities for humanitarian purposes, but Israel did not accept it.
Prime Minister Netanyahu said in a statement today, “We will continue to use all force, and Israel refuses a temporary ceasefire that does not include the release of hostages.”
He also took aim at Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group on Israel’s northern border, adding, “I will tell our enemies in the north, ‘Don’t test us, you will pay.'”
Hezbollah’s top leader, Hassan Nasrallah, said through a Lebanese broadcast yesterday (3rd) that if Israel launches a preemptive attack on Hezbollah, it would be the biggest mistake in history, adding that the U.S. aircraft carriers recently deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean will terrify Hezbollah. He claimed it couldn’t be done.
VOA News
*This article references AP and Reuters.
#Secretary #Blinken #discusses #IsraelHamas #situation #Arab #countries
2023-11-04 11:34:06
