Tel Aviv: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv on Friday, amid mounting international pressure for a pause in the Israeli offensive against Hamas in Gaza that has killed thousands of people. Blinken is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials to discuss Israel’s right to defend itself, as well as ways to reduce harm to civilians and deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave.
Blinken’s visit, his third to Israel since the conflict erupted on October 7, comes as Israeli ground forces have surrounded Gaza City, the main stronghold of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which launched a surprise attack on southern Israel last month that left 1,400 people dead. In response, Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes and artillery shelling on Hamas targets in Gaza, killing more than 9,000 people, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
“Returned to Israel for meetings with @IsraeliPM Netanyahu, President @Isaac_Herzog, and other government leaders. Will discuss Israel’s right to defend itself and our work to get humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza,” Blinken wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Blinken said he would seek “concrete steps” from Israel to ensure that civilian casualties are minimized, echoing the call of US President Joe Biden, who has expressed empathy for Palestinian suffering but also vowed full support and increased military aid to Israel. “We will be talking about concrete steps that can and should be taken to minimize harm to men, women, and children in Gaza,” Blinken told reporters before departing for Israel. “This is something that the United States is committed to.”
“When I see a Palestinian child — a boy, a girl — pulled from the rubble of a collapsed building, that hits me in the gut as much as seeing a child in Israel or anywhere else,” Blinken said. “So this is something that we have an obligation to respond to, and we will.”
Blinken also said he would raise the issue of the hostages being held by Hamas, and the prevention of a wider regional conflict. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Blinken would underscore the Biden administration’s support for Israel’s right to defend itself but also stress the importance of allowing humanitarian assistance to reach innocent Palestinians in Gaza.
Blinken’s trip also includes a stop in Jordan, where he will attend an Arab summit that is expected to address the crisis in Gaza and call for an immediate ceasefire. Several Arab countries, including Jordan and Bahrain, have recalled their ambassadors from Israel in protest of its actions in Gaza. Egypt, which has been mediating between Israel and Hamas, has also urged both sides to halt the violence and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.
Israel has allowed more than 260 trucks carrying food and medicine to cross into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing, but aid workers say it is not nearly enough to meet the needs of the 2 million people living in the densely populated strip. Around 800 people — including hundreds of Palestinians with foreign passports and dozens of injured — have been allowed to leave the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing under an apparent agreement among the US, Egypt, Israel, and Qatar. However, the crossings remain closed for most of the time, and the movement of people and goods is severely restricted by Israel, which has imposed a blockade on Gaza since 2007.
The UN has warned of a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, where electricity, water, and health services are severely disrupted, and thousands of people have been displaced by the Israeli bombardment. The UN has also accused both Israel and Hamas of possible war crimes for targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure. The UN Human Rights Council has voted to launch an international investigation into the violations committed during the conflict. Israel has rejected the resolution as biased and politically motivated, while Hamas has welcomed it as a step towards justice.
