U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken Wednesday called for an immediate end to the war in Gaza.
Of the 15 steps the United States recommended to alleviate Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, Israel has “taken action on or is in the process of implementing 12,” Blinken noted, referencing a letter he and Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin sent to Israeli leaders last month urging urgent measures to address Gaza's critical needs.
According to Blinken, three key issues remain for Israel to address: allowing civilians to return to areas from which they were displaced by Israeli operations; restoring commercial trucking; and extending pauses in Gaza to allow humanitarian aid to reach those in need.
“And again, they have to be fully implemented, and they have to be sustained,” he added.
“Even with all of these steps, the situation is so difficult and so dramatic that to fully redress it, to fully answer the needs of people, the best way to do that is to end the war,” Blinken said.
He added that Israel, “by the standards it set itself, has accomplished the goals it set for itself, the strategic goals it set for itself,” noting, “So this should be a time to end the war.”
Blinken emphasized that Israeli hostages should be safely returned home and that a clear plan should be established for Israel to withdraw from Gaza without allowing Hamas to return to govern the enclave.
“But short of ending the war, which we believe now is the time to move to, we have to see these humanitarian steps fully implemented and sustained, and as I said, particularly with regard to pauses having more extensive pauses,” he said.
Israel has continued its offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, with more than 43,700 fatalities reported, leaving the enclave nearly uninhabitable.
Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its deadly war on Gaza.
