US Secretary of State Antony Blinken believes the number of civilian casualties in Gaza is ‘far too high’. He informed Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel in a conversation, Blinken said afterwards. Blinken is in Israel for the fourth time since the outbreak of war and is more critical of Israeli actions than before.
According to Blinken, Israel must do everything possible to ensure that emergency aid enters Gaza smoothly. Moreover, it should give the UN the opportunity to figure out how Gazans can return home. Several Israeli ministers have made extreme statements about the emigration of Gazans to other countries, although that is not the official government position. That cannot be the case, says Blinken, who has also conveyed that message to Netanyahu.
Although he was critical of Israel’s actions, Blinken said he still supported Israel’s goal of eliminating Hamas. “The enormous amount of lives lost” on October 7 and the prevention of such attacks is why the US still stands with Israel, according to Blinken. ‘That must never happen again.’
Blinken also strongly criticized the accusation of genocide against Israel. According to Blinken, this accusation is intended to ‘distract the world’: ‘It is particularly vexing because those attacking Israel – Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis – continue to openly call for the destruction of Israel and the mass murder of Jews. ‘ There will be hearings at the International Court of Justice in The Hague later this week. South Africa has taken Israel to that court because it believes that Israel has violated the Genocide Convention.
The American minister also looked further ahead. According to him, it is necessary for Israel to commit to the two-state solution. Without the prospect of a Palestinian state, long-term peace is impossible, Blinken says. The current Israeli government has said several times that it does not want to cooperate in a two-state solution. “If Israel wants its Arab neighbors to make tough decisions to ensure continued security, Israeli leaders will have to make tough decisions themselves,” Blinken said.
Joram Bolle
AP – Blinken during a press conference in Tel Aviv.
2024-01-09 21:28:09
#Live #IsraelHamas #war #Air #France #airline #resumes #flights #Israel #KLM #believes #civilian #deaths #Gaza
