US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is pushing for a deal to end the Gaza war. The recent push for a ceasefire and a deal to release hostages is likely the best and possibly last chance to do so, Blinken said in Jerusalem on Monday.
After meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Blinken spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for three hours. His office said the conversation was positive. Critics accuse Netanyahu of blocking a ceasefire agreement because he fears the collapse of his governing coalition if he makes concessions to Hamas.
Hamas announces further suicide attacks
But Hamas also rejects the current status of the negotiations. The radical Islamist Hamas had, however, expressed doubts about the chances of an agreement. After an explosion in Tel Aviv, it announced that it would resume a campaign of suicide bombings.
“This is a defining moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to bring the hostages home, to reach a ceasefire, to put everybody on a better path to lasting peace and security,” Blinken told reporters. Last week, the talks in Qatar were postponed without a breakthrough. Negotiations will resume this week on the basis of a U.S. brokered proposal.
“Prevent conflicts from escalating further”
“The conflict must be prevented from escalating to other regions and becoming even more intense,” Blinken said. There are concerns about possible attacks on Israel from Iran, the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah and others. That is why US President Joe Biden is taking decisive steps, such as deploying troops to the region to prevent any attacks “and, if necessary, defend against any attacks.”
President Herzog accused the radical Palestinian Islamist organization Hamas of bearing the main responsibility for the failure of the talks brokered by the US, Egypt and Qatar in recent months, because of their recalcitrant attitude. “We still have great hope that we can make progress in the negotiations,” Herzog said at the same time. They wanted to see the hostages “home as soon as possible.”
Protesters demand hostage agreement
During Antony Blinken’s visit to Israel, hundreds of people demonstrated outside the US Secretary of State’s hotel in Tel Aviv, demanding an agreement to release Israeli hostages held by the Islamist Hamas. Blinken was meeting with relatives of the kidnapped at the time. Protesters called on Blinken to pressure the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a hostage deal.
US Vice President Kamala Harris expressed strong support for a deal amid ongoing efforts to broker a ceasefire in the Gaza war and release hostages. Talks are ongoing and the US administration is not giving up but is working “very hard” to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion, Harris said on the sidelines of campaigning in the US state of Pennsylvania. “We need to have a ceasefire and we need to get these hostages out,” Harris said.
US President Biden also said that talks were ongoing. According to journalists who traveled with him, Biden said that the US would not give up, a deal was still possible when he arrived in the Washington area. He had spent the weekend at the US president’s estate, Camp David.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
