2 minutes agoBlinken tells Israel and Hamas that “has come the time” for ceasefire
Periskopi(2 years ago)
(2 years ago)US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Israeli leaders on 1 May during his visit to Israel, and told the country's president that the time has come “for a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. This is Blinken's seventh visit since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas ʹ the Palestinian group [...]
This is Blinken's seventh visit since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas ʹ the Palestinian group declared terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union in October. He is trying to reach a ceasefire agreement, which would free hostages held by Hamas militants in exchange for stopping the fighting. Palestinian prisoners are also expected to be released as part of the agreement.
Blinken has blamed Hamas for any delay in reaching an agreement.
“We are determined to reach a ceasefire that brings the hostages home and achieve it now, and the only reason this would not be achieved is because of Hamas”, he said.
Blinken visited top regional leaders in Saudi Arabia and Jordan before arriving in Israel. He met with Israeli President Isaac Herzeg, and would meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later. According to the US State Department, he will meet with hostage families as well as visit an Israeli port where the entrance of humanitarian aid sent to Gaza is being issued.
The ongoing agreement between Israel and Hamas appears to be advancing, the AP news agency reports, but a key point where it is mired remains doubt whether war will end as part of the agreement Hamas has repeated and that Israel rejects.
On Tuesday, Blinken said Israel plans to open a major humanitarian aid checkpoint in northern Gaza. The Israeli-Hamas war has devastated large parts of northern Gaza, and hunger is inevitable for hundreds of thousands of civilians who remain there.
Nearly seven months of Israeli bombings and ground offensives in Gaza have killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and have caused a humanitarian disaster.
The Israeli-Haams war was sparked by the October 7th unprecedented attack in southern Israel, where militants killed about 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and kidnapped about 250 hostages. Israel says militants still hold about 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others. REL
