Hamas would be the only obstacle to a ceasefire in Gaza. This is what US Secretary of State Blinken said, adding that an Israeli attack in the southern Gaza Strip “would cause damage beyond acceptable”.
Gaza, Blinken: “Hamas is the only obstacle to the ceasefire”
“Hamas is the only obstacle to the ceasefire in Gaza“: the US Secretary of State said so Antony Blinken, while the militants prepare to send a delegation to Cairo for talks. “We’re waiting to see if, in fact, they’re going to take a yes response to a ceasefire and hostage release,” Blinken stressed. “The reality right now is that the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas“.
The Israeli attack on Rafah would cause damage beyond acceptable
“An Israeli attack on Rafahthe city in the south of the Gaza Strip where more than one million Palestinians displaced by the war, would cause damage beyond what is acceptable,” the US Secretary of State warned. According to Blinken, Israel has not presented any plans to protect civilians during this possible attack. “In the absence of such a plan, we cannot support a large-scale military operation in Rafahbecause the harm it would cause would be beyond what is acceptable,” he said during the McCain Institute Forum in Sedona, Arizona.
No plan to protect civilians
In the city in the south of the Gaza Strip they are crowded more than one million Palestinians displaced by war but, according to Blinken, Israel has not presented any plans to protect civilians during this possible attack. “In the absence of such a plan, we cannot support a large-scale military operation in Rafah, because the damage it would cause would be beyond what is acceptable.”
Media, Qatar available on request US expulsion of Hamas
Qatar is ready to accept the US request to expel the Hamas leadership from Doha, including Ismail Haniyeh. A source familiar with the dossier told the Times of Israel. According to the Washington Post (WP), US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last month delivered the request to “expel” Hamas leaders from the country if they continue to reject the ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Blinken – according to the newspaper – delivered this message to Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani last month. WP also reported that Qatar had been waiting for the US request for months.
Source Ansa
