Foreign Ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) countries have restated their commitment to de-escalating tensions in the region.
Speaking at a press conference after a G7 summit, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said that the bloc has emerged from its reunion “more united than ever,” including on how to address the conflict in the Middle East.
“We’re committed to Israel’s security. We’re also committed to de-escalating to try to bring this tension to a close,” Blinken stated.
“What the G7 is focused on, and it’s reflected in our statement and in our conversation, is our work to de-escalate tensions, to de-escalate from any potential conflict.
“You saw Israel on the receiving end of an unprecedented attack, but our focus has been on, of course, making sure that Israel can effectively defend itself, but also de-escalating tensions and avoiding conflict. That remains our focus.”
Antony Blinken
Blinken noted that even with the tensions with Israel and Iran, “we’ve remained intensely focused on Gaza” and addressing the humanitarian crisis there.
Also, Blinken said that the G7 also urged for “the rapid implementation of Israel’s humanitarian assistance commitments” in Gaza.
He averred, “We have seen important steps over the last couple of weeks with more crossings opening, more aid getting in, more aid getting around but we need to see sustained results and we need to see, in particular, distribution throughout Gaza.”
The United States, Blinken said, believes that Israel can achieve its military objectives in Gaza without an all-out invasion of Rafah, which the US will not support.
“We believe that a major military operation with a large presence of civilian population would have terrible consequences for that population,” he said.
He added, “We are committed to achieving a Palestinian state with necessary guarantees for Israel.”
He disclosed that the US had engaged in discussions about Rafah with senior Israeli officials as recently as this week and that such discussions would continue.
Moreover, Blinken divulged that during their meeting, the G7 Foreign Ministers discussed the need for a ceasefire in Gaza.
However, the US Secretary of state said that Hamas “continues to move the goalposts.”
“The only thing standing between [Palestinians in Gaza] and a ceasefire is Hamas,” Blinken claimed.
He voiced that Hamas has “rejected generous proposals from Israel.”
“It seems more interested in a regional conflict than it is in a ceasefire that would immediately improve the lives of the Palestinian people”, Blinken added.
Hamas Dismisses Blinken’s Claim
Hamas denounced Blinken’s claim that it is obstructing ceasefire talks.
“It is a confirmation of the American administration’s blatant bias towards Zionist fascism and a falsification of reality,” Hamas said in a statement.
“The Hamas movement’s negotiating behaviour was based on the interest of our Palestinian people and the priority of stopping the brutal aggression against them, the withdrawal of the occupation, the return of the displaced, and ending their human suffering created by the American-funded killing machine.”
Hamas
The group added that if the US was sincere in wanting to stop the war in Gaza, it must pressure Israel “and stop the American political and military cover for the crimes of genocide and starvation practiced by the Nazi occupation against defenseless civilians in the Gaza Strip.”
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Health Ministry announced that the death toll of the ongoing war is at 34,012. It said that 76,833 people have been wounded.
The ministry added that 42 people were killed and 63 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.
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