US Secretary of State Antony Blinken renewed calls for Hamas to accept a ceasefire deal Wednesday as he started talks with Israel’s leadership.
“Even in these very difficult times we are determined to get a ceasefire that brings the hostages home — and to get it now. And the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” Blinken said as he met Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
The US secretary of state has shared photos of his visit to an aid warehouse in Jordan as he made another trip to the Middle East.
Blinken left Jordan earlier today and traveled to Israel, where he is expected to push for a ceasefire, allowing more aid to be transported into Gaza during meetings with Israeli officials.
According to the BBC, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a meeting of hostages’ relatives that Israel will launch an invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah “with or without” a deal.
His comments follow renewed warnings by the US against a Rafah invasion unless civilians were properly protected.
An earlier White House statement said. US President Joe Biden has previously described an invasion of Rafah as a “red line”. On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said an assault on Rafah would be an “unbearable escalation”, appealing for “all those with influence over Israel to do everything in their power to prevent it”.
More than half of Gaza’s 2.5m population is in Rafah
Aid progress
“Tangible progress has been made,” Blinken wrote on X, “additional crossings, increased aid into the north. But more is needed, and that’s why I’m in the region this week”.
Guterres gave remarks earlier on Tuesday in which he commented on the need for more aid to Gaza, Israel’s looming Rafah invasion, and the importance of supporting UNRWA, the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees.
