U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Tel Aviv press conference
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a press conference in Tel Aviv on Monday, where he discussed the conclusion of his visit to Israel amid ongoing negotiations for a cease-fire and hostage release deal.
He mentioned that, during his meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the latter "confirmed to me that Israel accepts the bridging proposal" presented by the U.S. at the summit in Doha. "It’s now incumbent on Hamas to do the same."
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: Haim Tzach, GPO)
From Israel, Blinken will depart for Egypt, where another summit is planned to take place with mediators next week.
“President Biden asked me to come back on this trip with two main goals in mind. The first is to reaffirm the commitment of the United States to Israel’s security, and that’s a commitment that we’ve put into practice virtually every day since October 7, including when Israel was attacked directly by Iran back in April,” he said.
“What’s most crucial now is that everyone – everyone – refrain from taking any actions that could fuel further conflict, escalate tensions and result in the spreading of violence and conflict,” he added.
He addressed the U.S. proposal presented at late week’s summit and his meeting with Netanyahu. “The president put forward a proposal with Qatar and with Egypt to try to bridge the gaps that remain between the parties so that we could get agreement to what the president put out there a couple of months ago.
“In a very constructive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu today, he confirmed to me that Israel accepts the bridging proposal, that he supports it. It’s now incumbent on Hamas to do the same.”
Meanwhile, a Wall Street Journal report published Monday cited sources among the mediators who said Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar believed the current round of talks is a "bluff" intended to give Israel more time to continue the war in Gaza. The terrorist leader, the sources said, hopes to increase pressure on Israel by expanding the war – including via attacks from the West Bank.
According to Blinken, “The mediators – the United States, Egypt, and Qatar – have to come together and complete the process of reaching clear understandings about how they’ll implement the commitments that they’ve made under this agreement.”
“But there is, I think, a real sense of urgency here, across the region, on the need to get this over the finish line and to do it as soon as possible,” he added.
He further said: “We’ll never give up on it, but the challenge is the longer this goes on, the more, again, hostages will suffer – possibly perish – and the more other things happen that could make things impossible.”
“The bridging proposal that Prime Minister Netanyahu has accepted and we look to Hamas to accept reflects what is in the cease-fire agreement that President Biden put before the world back in May, that’s incorporated into a UN Security Council resolution, and that makes clear that this process will proceed in phases.
“A first initial cease-fire over the course of six weeks in which hostages are released, prisoners are exchanged, and negotiations commence on the conditions necessary for an enduring cease-fire. That’s what the – that’s what the deal says. That’s what’s reflected in what was put before the world and the world endorsed, the Security Council endorsed,” Blinken explained.
Netanyahu said on Monday his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, was positive and was conducted in a good spirit. "The prime minister reiterated Israel's commitment to the latest American proposal regarding the release of our hostages, taking into account Israel's security needs, which he insists on firmly," his office said in a statement after the 3-hour-long meeting.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also met with Blinken before the conference in his office in Tel Aviv. His office said in a statement that he told the American official: “Just as Israel is leader military pressure against Hamas, so too does the U.S. need to lead to political pressure to reach an agreement that will bring the hostages back.”