US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel to condemn the Hamas attack on the country and express condolences to the victims of the attacks.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Egypt in a few days. That is, all the major countries in the Middle East region, where a new war is emerging between Israel and Hamas.
Task – evacuation
In Israel, Blinken, with promises of all support, also called on the authorities to take all possible measures to prevent harm to civilians living in the Gaza Strip. “What matters is how Israel does it (defends its territory). We, as democracies, differ from terrorists because we strive for different standards of warfare… That is why it is so important to take all possible precautions to avoid harming civilians,” said the Secretary of State.
On the morning of October 13, the Israel Defense Forces issued a call for Gazans to evacuate the southern part of the strip within 24 hours.
About 2.3 million people live in the Gaza Strip, and the Israeli authorities’ call for evacuation concerns more than 1.1 million. It is almost impossible to evacuate such a number of people.
Since Gaza’s border with Egypt remains closed on the Egyptian side (as does the Israeli border), civilians are trapped. Therefore, one of the directions of American diplomacy in recent days is an attempt to convince the Egyptian authorities to open the border to refugees. As a result, according to media reports, Blinken was able to convince Cairo to open a checkpoint in the Gaza Strip.
Negotiation with all parties
After Hamas attacked Israel, Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized that his main task now was to prevent new entrants from being drawn into the conflict. This also applies to the administration of the West Bank, the second Palestinian territory, where approximately three million people live. This territory can be a second front.
Blinken and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas first discussed the Hamas attack by phone immediately after the October 7 attack. The Abbas administration has been opposed to Hamas since 2007. In that conversation, the Secretary of State to his interlocutor to condemn the actions of terrorists and ensure stability in the West Bank. However, Abbas never did.
On Friday, October 13, Blinken met with Abbas in Amman, Jordan. Almost nothing is known about the content of these negotiations.
Two camps
After the Hamas attack, American diplomats have been communicating with Arab partners through various channels. They call on those who maintain ties with Hamas to influence the movement: convince them to stop the attack and release the hostages. Those affiliated with the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah or Iran are asked not to be drawn into the conflict.
Along with Blinken’s efforts, active negotiations are also taking place in the camp of Israel’s opponents. Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, Lebanese leaders and Hezbollah representatives. Abdollahian plans to visit Syria next.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.