Blinken says US cannot support Rafah assault without humanitarian plan
(VOVWORLD) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday he has still not seen a plan for Israel's planned offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah that would protect civilians, repeating that Washington could not support such an assault.
 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv on May 1, 2024. (Photo: AFP/VNA) |
Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Jerusalem for two-and-a-half hours, after which Israel repeated that the Rafah operation would go ahead despite the US position and a UN warning that it would lead to "tragedy".
Blinken told reporters that there are other ways of dealing with the ongoing challenge of Hamas that does not require a major military operation in Rafah.
An Israeli government spokesperson said Israel remained determined to destroy the remaining Hamas fighting formations.
Blinken also urged Hamas to accept a truce deal proposed by Egyptian mediators which would see 33 hostages released in exchange for a larger number of Palestinian prisoners and a halt to the fighting, with the possibility of further steps towards a comprehensive deal later.
A senior official for Hamas said it was still studying the proposed deal but said Israel was the real obstacle.