On January 9, local time, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was visiting Israel, urged Israel to make a "difficult choice" to normalize relations with more neighboring countries. He did not call for a ceasefire and rejected South Africa's accusations of "genocide" against Israel.
This is Blinken's fourth visit to the Middle East and his fifth visit to Israel since the current round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and the purpose of this visit is to "cool down regional tensions." But according to Reuters and Al Jazeera, Israeli forces are stepping up air strikes and ground offensives in central and southern Gaza, with heavy civilian casualties in Gaza. In addition, there is "saber rattling" between Allah and Israel in Lebanon.
Blinken met with Netanyahu and Israel's defense ministers on the 9th, the picture is from Blinken's Twitter
According to a press release released on the website of the US State Department, on the same day, Blinken held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the president, the defense minister and many other dignitaries. In his meeting with Netanyahu, Blinken stressed "the importance of avoiding further harm to civilians in Gaza and protecting civilian infrastructure," while reiterating that the Biden administration supports Israel's right to self-defense.
"In Gaza, the daily civilian death toll from the war is too high," Blinken said at a news conference after the meeting, calling on Israeli forces to protect civilians, reiterating that Palestinians in Gaza should return to their homes as soon as conditions allow. So far, the conflict has killed more than 23,000 people in Gaza.
However, Blinken refused to accuse Israel of genocide during the military operation against Gaza and called South Africa's previous lawsuit "baseless." On December 29 last year, South Africa filed a complaint with the International Court of Justice in The Hague, accusing Israel of committing "genocide" in Gaza.
Blinken said that in his talks with Netanyahu, he "reaffirmed the need to ensure lasting and sustainable peace in Israel and the region, including the realization of a Palestinian state." He said the United States hopes that Israel can establish normal relations with more regional countries, many of which have expressed their readiness to invest in Gaza's future after the war.
He declined to disclose Netanyahu and the Israeli government's response to the two-state solution, but added that Israel would have to make "difficult decisions, difficult choices" and that "Israel must be a partner of the Palestinian leadership" in order to normalize relations with more of its neighbors.
He also criticized Israeli "extremist settlers" for expanding settlements and expelling Palestinians.
Blinken said he had discussed the future of Gaza and Israel with Israeli officials, screenshot of the tweet
Blinken did not call for a ceasefire and refused to accuse the Israeli army of "genocide", while the Israeli side continued to "go its own way". Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant told Blinken that day that the Israeli offensive in southern Gaza would "intensify and continue until the Hamas leader is found and the Israeli hostages return home safely," the Israeli Defense Ministry said.
Hamas was also unhappy with Blinken's trip. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters that Blinken's visit showed that the US position had not fundamentally changed, that the trip was "aimed at supporting Israel's security" and that "there is no difference between Israel and the United States."
From January 4 to 11, Blinken made his fourth trip to the Middle East in three months. Prior to his visit to Israel, Blinken visited Turkey, Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. At present, the risk of spillover from the current round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is increasing, and the international community's dissatisfaction with Israel and the United States is gradually deepening. Some foreign media believe that Blinken is embarking on an "extremely risky" visit to the Middle East.
It is worth mentioning that Blinken has repeatedly stressed in recent days that "Palestinians must not be forced to leave Gaza". However, according to US media Axios, before Blinken arrived in Israel on the 9th, a senior Israeli official revealed that Israel would inform Blinken in person that if Hamas did not release the hostages, Palestinians would not be allowed to return to northern Gaza.
As Blinken was busy meeting with Israeli counterparts, tensions in the Middle East were mounting.
On January 8, local time, Israeli airstrikes led to the death of a senior commander of Lebanon's Allah Party, and the situation on the Lebanese-Israeli border further escalated. At the same time, Israeli forces and Hamas are engaged in heavy fighting in southern and central Gaza. According to data from the Palestinian side on the 9th local time, in the past 24 hours, the conflict has killed 126 people in Gaza and injured 241 people.
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