More than three months after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, called on Tuesday in Tel Aviv the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to spare the trapped Palestinian civilians in the small besieged territory.
During his fourth tour of the Middle East since the start of the war, Mr. Blinken reaffirmed to Mr. Netanyahu “(American) support for Israel’s right to prevent a repeat of the October 7 attacks and insisted on the importance of preventing further harm to civilians and protecting civilian infrastructure in Gaza,” according to a State Department statement.
On Tuesday morning, Mr. Blinken met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and spoke of the “very difficult moment” Israel is going through, while saying the country had a “real chance” of integration with its Arab neighbors.
US President Joe Biden said Monday that he was working “discreetly with the Israeli government to get it to reduce” the presence of its troops in Gaza.
The war between Israel and Hamas was sparked by a bloody Hamas attack on October 7 on Israeli soil which killed around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on the Israeli toll.
A total of 185 soldiers have been killed since the start of the ground offensive on October 27, including nine on Monday, according to a new report published Tuesday.
The strikes by the Israeli army, which has sworn to destroy Hamas, considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union, have left more than 23,210 dead, mainly women and minors, according to a latest report on Tuesday. of Hamas.
This article is originally published on rtl.be
