The Secretary of State of the United States, Antony Blinken, began a new tour of the Middle East this Monday in Egypt and Israel with the priority of promoting the ceasefire proposal in Gaza that President Joe Biden announced at the end of May and asking the region’s leaders to pressure Hamas to give its approval. Also on the agenda of the head of US diplomacy is the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Strip, plans for its future governance and the risk of a spread of the conflict. However, the recent Israeli massacre in the center of the Palestinian enclave during the rescue operation of four hostages and changes in the Israeli Government could complicate Blinken’s mission on his eighth trip to the area since the war broke out last October.
In statements made in Cairo, Blinken assured that he will urge the leaders of the region with whom he meets to put pressure on Hamas to accept the ceasefire proposal that is on the table, according to the Reuters agency. The diplomat also stated that the Palestinian fundamentalist movement is the only one that has not so far approved the agreement plan, and reiterated that Israel has done so despite the fact that this has not been the case publicly and that its Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu , has sent out contradictory messages in recent days in this regard.
The head of Hamas’s political bureau, Ismail Haniyah, and the secretary general of the Islamic Jihad movement, Ziyad al Najalah, insisted after meeting on Monday in Doha (Qatar) that the agreement must include a permanent cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza, a prisoner exchange, a reconstruction plan and the end of the siege, according to a statement from the group. Ending the conflict is the perennial point of disagreement between the parties, since Israel refuses to give up continuing the attacks once the release of the kidnapped people has been achieved.
In Egypt, which along with Qatar is the main mediator between Israel and Hamas, Blinken met with the country’s president, Abdel Fattá Al Sisi, and the head of Intelligence, Abbas Kamel, who is in charge of the Gaza file. In addition to analyzing the latest progress regarding the latest truce proposal, during the meeting they addressed the future management of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, which in the first months of the war was the main access point for humanitarian aid to the Strip, but it has remained closed since Israel occupied the Palestinian terminal of the crossing in early May.
After his time in Cairo, Blinken flew to Israel, where he met separately with Netanyahu. The head of US diplomacy also plans to meet on Tuesday, according to Israeli media, with opposition leader Benny Gantz, who also maintains close relations with the Biden administration, but who on Sunday announced his resignation from the war cabinet and the Government. due to disagreements with the prime minister over the management of the offensive in Gaza.
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Blinken’s previous visits to the Middle East have failed to bring about significant progress in indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel. On this occasion he fears that, once again, the context of his new tour may not be favorable to unlocking a truce agreement. His trip to the region begins two days after the massacre committed by Israeli forces in Nuseirat, in central Gaza, during the rescue operation of four hostages. The United States provided information for that operation in which the Israeli military killed 274 people and injured about 700, according to health authorities in the Strip, where Hamas rules.
The Pentagon reacted this Monday to clarify that the jetty built on the Gaza beach to facilitate the arrival of humanitarian aid and which is under US control was not used to rescue the four captives, an operation in which, they added, no forces participated either. from the USA
The departure of Gantz’s National Unity Party from the Israeli Government has further isolated Netanyahu politically, who is now even more exposed to the far-right parties on which the stability of his Executive depends. They have repeatedly threatened to drop him if an agreement is reached with Hamas and the war stops. After his time in Israel, Blinken plans to fly to Jordan, where he will attend a regional economic conference on the humanitarian response in Gaza on Tuesday, and then head to Qatar, where he is expected to conclude his regional tour on Wednesday.
Blinken’s visit coincides with the announcement of a possible agreement between the United States and Hamas to free the five hostages of this nationality who are in Gaza. This is an agreement that would be carried out with the intermediation of Qatar and without the intervention of Israel, according to NBC. In this way, Washington would be trying to ensure the release of its nationals in case the ceasefire agreement does not go ahead.
“Israel welcomes any initiative to free our hostages,” Netanyahu responded, fleeing a possible controversy with the White House, according to words provided by the Israeli prime minister’s office. All five have dual American-Israeli nationality. Inside Gaza, there are also the bodies of three other citizens with dual nationality who died during the conflict.
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