CAIRO — CAIRO (AP) — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken returns to the Middle East this week, as proposed A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas is on the line after the dramatic save of four Israeli hostages held in Gaza in a major military attack and unrest in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
Since Hamas has not yet provided a final response to the proposal received ten days ago, Blinken will begin his eighth diplomatic mission to the region since the conflict started in October. He will meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi in Cairo before traveling to Israel, Jordan and Qatar.
Although President Joe Biden, Blinken and other US officials have praised the rescue of the hostages, the operation has resulted in the deaths of a large number of Palestinian civilians, which could complicate the ceasefire by emboldening Israel and weakening the resolve of Hamas to continue fighting to strengthen. the war it started with the October 7 attacks in Israel.
“It is difficult to say how Hamas will handle this particular operation and what it will do to its determination to say yes or not,” Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday. “We have not received a formal response from Hamas at this time.”
In his talks with the leaders of el-Sissi and Qatar, whose countries are the main mediators with Hamas in the ceasefire negotiations, Blinken will emphasize the importance of convincing the militants to accept the three-phase proposal on the table. accept. The plan calls for the release of more hostages and a temporary pause in hostilities that could lead to the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
“We are hopeful that if there is enough of a choir and the international community all speaks with one voice, Hamas will arrive at the right answer,” Sullivan told ABC’s “This Week.”
But Hamas may not be the only obstacle.
Although the deal has been described as an Israeli initiative and thousands of Israelis have demonstrated in support of the deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed skepticism, saying that what has been publicly presented is not accurate and rejecting calls for Israel to stop all fighting until Hamas is eradicated.
Netanyahu’s far-right allies have threatened to topple his government if he implements the plan Bennie Gantza popular centrist, resigned from the three-member war cabinet on Sunday, after saying he would do it if the prime minister did not a new plan for post-war Gaza. In the wake of the hostage rescue, Netanyahu had urged him not to resign.
Blinken has met with Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Gantz and Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid on almost all of his previous trips to Israel. Officials said Gantz’s resignation would not necessarily affect Blinken’s schedule.
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Friday that Blinken would use the trip to “discuss how the ceasefire proposal would benefit both Israelis and Palestinians.”
Miller said the deal would not only ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, but also pave the way for a reduction in tension along the Israel-Lebanon border and create conditions for broader Israeli integration with its Arab neighbors, allowing Israel’s long-term security would be strengthened.
Despite Blinken’s visits to the region about once a month since the war began, the conflict has continued and has left more than 36,700 dead, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Meanwhile, the war has seriously hampered the flow of refugees food, medicine and other supplies for the Palestinians who have to deal with this widespread hunger. UN agencies say more than 1 million people in Gaza could experience this highest level of famine mid-July.
In Jordan, Blinken will participate in an emergency international conference on improving the flow of aid to Gaza.
