WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken will push for a breakthrough on President Joe Biden’s cease-fire proposal when he returns to the Middle East next week on his eighth diplomatic mission to the region since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza began in October, the State Department said Friday.
Blinken, who is currently in France accompanying Biden on a state visit timed to the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion during World War II, will fly from Paris to Cairo on Monday to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and other officials before traveling to Israel, Jordan and Qatar, the department said. Blinken will then go to Italy to join Biden at the summit for the Group of Seven advanced economies.
In all of his meetings, Blinken “will emphasize the importance of Hamas accepting the proposal on the table, which is nearly identical to one Hamas endorsed last month” and “discuss how the cease-fire proposal would benefit both Israelis and Palestinians,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
“He will underscore that it would alleviate suffering in Gaza, enable a massive surge in humanitarian assistance, and allow Palestinians to return to their neighborhoods,” he said in a statement. “It would unlock the possibility of achieving calm along Israel’s northern border — so both displaced Israeli and Lebanese families can return to their homes — and set the conditions for further integration between Israel and its Arab neighbors, strengthening Israel’s long-term security and improving stability across the region.”
In Israel, Blinken will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials. In Jordan, he will participate in an emergency international conference on aid to Gaza, and in Qatar he will meet with officials who are attempting to mediate the cease-fire deal.
The lightning tour comes as the Biden administration is pushing hard for Hamas to accept a three-phase cease-fire proposal that would include the release of hostages taken from Israel and held by the militant group and potentially pave the way for an end to the conflict and the reconstruction of Gaza.
I can already tell you the content of next week’s headline : “Israel tells Blinken to go get stuffed, Biden apologizes for his impertinence and sends more weapons”
Netanyahu agreed to the cease-fire prior to Biden’s announcement, then he backpedaled. He’s been back on board for five days now. Now we’re waiting on Hamas to agree to begin the cease-fire and hostage release negotiations.
And what makes you think he won’t just back pedal again as soon as Hamas gets onside?
He wants Biden to lose in November, and he wants a forever war so he won’t have to leave office. Playing ball on a ceasefire hurts both of those goals.
And he knows that the current generation of US leadership will fully support Israel literally no matter what.
If I were Netanyahu I would be sabotaging the process too.
He can if he’s ready to lose aid. Acting in bad faith to an agreed upon cease-fire would give Biden ground to amend existing aid agreements against Congress and the State Department.
I don’t see that happening; like I said I think Israel gets their weapons no matter what they do with this generation of leaders. Even if Biden has the legal authority, he has made it clear he does not have the inclination.
I think the comp here is Republicans with Trump; they will furrow their brows and say that “if he does X it will be too far”, then immediately fall in line after X happens.
When the people who are now, say, 35 or 40 are in office, things might be different.
There’s truthfully no way to tell his inclination yet. With Congress legislating aid, and the State Department providing inconclusive evidence of crime, he’d be facing impeachment by withdrawing aid without support of either branch.
Netanyahu floundered at first, but is now on board with the cease-fire. Hamas initially pushed back, wanting a commitment to a full ceasefire and release of all Palestinian prisoners from the start.
There’s good reason to believe they’ll come around. The cease-fire agreement would result in a full cease-fire, and reconstruction aid in Gaza, provided the first two of three phases are met in good faith.
Biden said the first phase of the proposed deal would would last for six weeks and would include a “full and complete cease-fire,” a withdrawal of Israeli forces from all densely populated areas of Gaza and the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
The second phase would include the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza. “And as long as Hamas lives up to its commitments, the temporary cease-fire would become, in the words of the Israeli proposal, ‘the cessation of hostilities permanently,’” Biden said.
The third phase calls for the start of a major reconstruction of Gaza, which faces decades of rebuilding from devastation caused by the war. The 4-1/2 page Israeli proposal was transmitted to Hamas on Thursday.
https://apnews.com/article/biden-israel-hamas-58169a607d4a7c4d7fc34f43160076b8
Given the scope of destruction they’ve caused, I find it harder to believe, but I hope you’re right and they will follow through.
Guys I don’t think they want to cease the firing
I would be happy to be proven wrong, but they had some chances already, and they just told Blinken yeah sure sounds good and then fell on the floor laughing when he left and went back to killing children
Don’t worry, they’ll accept it any day now.
He might as well buy a house in Jordan at this point.
