The US Secretary of State and its ambassador to Israel spoke about the depth of the relationship between Washington and Tel Aviv, the operation in Rafah, and their agreement on the necessity of defeating the Hamas movement.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken discussed in a call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant the situation in Gaza “and the ongoing efforts to release the hostages.”
The US State Department said – in a statement – that Blinken stressed Washington’s firm commitment to Israel’s security “and the common goal of defeating Hamas.”
The statement stated that Blinken reiterated the United States’ opposition to a major ground military operation in Rafah.
He also stressed the urgent need to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza and to ensure humanitarian access.
Blinken called on Israel to help address the challenges of distributing humanitarian aid inside Gaza.
Emptiness or rebellion
Earlier, Blinken said that Israel had not presented any credible plan for a military operation in Rafah that would protect civilians.
He stressed that if Israel decides to move forward with the Rafah process, the United States does not want to be part of that.
“Israel is on a path that is likely to lead to insurgency if the presence of many armed Hamas fighters continues or if it leaves a chaotic vacuum that Hamas is likely to fill,” Blinken added.
He stated that Hamas fighters are already returning to the areas of northern Gaza, where Israel said it had eliminated the militants.
In the same context, a White House statement said that National Security Advisor Jack Sullivan assured his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi, of the United States’ firm commitment to Israel’s security and the defeat of Hamas in Gaza.
Sullivan reiterated to his Israeli counterpart President Joe Biden’s concerns about the possibility of launching a major military ground operation in Rafah.
For his part, the Israeli National Security Advisor assured Sullivan that Israel takes American concerns into account.
The situation is as it is
As for the American ambassador to Israel, Jack Lew, he said that there will be no interruption in American military aid to Israel.
Liu added, “Israel did not cross the red line in Rafah, and it is wrong to believe that anything has fundamentally changed in the relationship between Washington and Tel Aviv,” according to what was reported by Israeli Channel 12.
On the other hand, the Hamas movement denounced the statements of US President Joe Biden, in which he said that the ceasefire was contingent on the movement releasing detainees in Gaza.
It considered Biden’s position a retreat from the results of the last round of negotiations that led to the movement’s approval of the proposal of the mediators in Egypt and Qatar, with the knowledge and information of the American mediator.
