by Oui
Mon Jul 15th, 2024 at 01:42:08 PM EST
A 'horrific massacre' - that's how Palestinians are describing one of the worst Israeli attacks on Gaza, since the war began. More than 90 Palestinians were killed and 300 injured on Saturday, in al-Mawasi - an area Israel had designated as safe. Its fighter jets and drones unleashed a barrage of missiles and bombs, obliterating tents that sheltered thousands of displaced families.
As the death toll rises and the humanitarian crisis deepens, there are serious questions about Israel's military conduct and the protection of civilians. Israel claims it was targeting Hamas leaders. But is that justification for killing so many civilians?
For 18 years, Hala Rharrit worked as a political officer in the US Department of State, and eventually as spokesperson for the government. After realising that United States policy on Israel's war on Gaza was making it "impossible" to promote the US, "it came to a point where I realised I could no longer be part of the [Biden] administration", she says.
Rharrit tells host Steve Clemons that US talking points are "dehumanising to the Palestinians" neglect their plight. and follow the lead of Israeli talking points. US policy is destabilising the region and not making Israel any safer, Rharrit argues.
'As Far as Israel Can Go' | Dispatch - 2 May 2024 |
The Israel-Hamas war reaches a crucial crossroads as Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the region.
TEL AVIV, Israel--Dozens of demonstrators carrying posters of hostages gathered outside of Secretary of State Antony Blinken's Tel Aviv hotel on Wednesday morning with an unusual message: "Thank you." The top U.S. diplomat and his entourage arrived in the country this week hoping to strike a long-awaited deal to bring the captives, including five Americans, out of Hamas custody after nearly seven months in Gaza.
"Bringing your loved ones home is at the heart of everything we're trying to do, and we will not rest until everyone--man, woman, soldier, civilian, young, old--is back home," Blinken told the assembled crowd. "There is a very strong proposal on the table right now. Hamas needs to say yes and needs to get this done."
The U.S. and Israel presented a united front this week in a final diplomatic push to get the terror group to agree to a deal. In exchange for the multi-stage release of hostages, Israel has agreed to a temporary pause in fighting and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. But whether Hamas will abandon its maximalist demands, which include a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and a permanent ceasefire, remains unclear. The terror group's response to the latest proposal is expected as soon as today.
Blinken in Tel Aviv: Onus is on Hamas to end the war and release the hostages.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets relatives of Israeli hostages | euronews 🇬🇧 |
More complete uncensored video of Blinken meeting family of hostages ...
Secretary Blinken Meets with Families of Hostages Held in Gaza | C-Span - Video |
Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with family members of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during a stop in Tel Aviv. "Bringing your loved ones home is at the heart of everything we're trying to do...Hamas needs to say yes," he said.
Protests in Tel Aviv as Israeli hostage families demand ceasefire deal | FRANCE 24 English - 6 May 2024 |
Hamas on Monday said it accepts a proposal for a truce in the seven-month-old war in Gaza, as Israel renewed an order for Palestinians in Rafah to evacuate ahead of a long-threatened invasion of the city. Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv late on Monday, calling on their government to accept a truce deal and hostage release.
Massive Protest In Israel As Hostage Families Call For Ceasefire Deal
Blinken: Israel Abides by International Law
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Sec. Blinken says Israel has the 'will' and 'means to police itself' | NBC News Meet the Press - 12 May 2024 |
Secretary of State Antony Blinken joins Meet the Press to discuss his department's report on Gaza -- and whether Israel is violating international law.
President Biden Introduces the Israeli Ceasefire Proposal - a Southpaw Pitch
Joe Biden unveils Israeli proposal to end war in Gaza and urges Hamas to accept plan | ABC News - 1 June 2024 |
Secretary Antony J. Blinken's Remarks to the Press | Cairo Airport - 10 June 2024 |
Well, good afternoon, everyone. Ten days ago, President Biden put forward a proposal that would produce an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, get all the hostages home, and put us on a path to an enduring resolution to the conflict in Gaza. It's a proposal that is very close to what Hamas itself had agreed to some time before. Since the President put the proposal forward, countries throughout the region and around the world - as well as international organizations - have all endorsed it. Israel has accepted it. And the only outlier in this moment - the only outlier in this moment - is Hamas.
So my message to governments throughout the region, to people throughout the region is: If you want a ceasefire, press Hamas to say yes. If you want to alleviate the terrible suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, press Hamas to say yes. If you want to get all the hostages home, press Hamas to say yes. If you want to put Israelis and Palestinians alike on the path to more durable peace and security, press Hamas to say yes. If you want to prevent this conflict from spreading, press Hamas to say yes.
Now, if we get this ceasefire, it also opens the path to more durable security, calm, peace in Gaza. And for that, it's critical that we continue to work on plans for the day after to make sure that when it comes to security in Gaza, when it comes to governance, when it comes to reconstruction, we have the plans in place to move forward. That's going to be a critical part of my conversations here in the region, as we go on to Israel and then to Jordan and then to Qatar.
Throughout this process, Egypt has played a critical and a leading role in supporting the proposal to get to a ceasefire and return of hostages, in working on these day-after plans, in being a critical partner as well for getting humanitarian assistance in to the Palestinian people who so desperately need it in Gaza. And I want to thank President Sisi again for a very good exchange and for all the work we're doing almost on a daily basis.
In Jordan itself - and we'll come to this in a day - we're going to be focused intensely on the humanitarian assistance piece and civilian protection. Because deal or no deal, it remains absolutely essential that we get more aid to Palestinians who need it, that that aid gets around and distributed to those who are so desperately in need of it, and that we continue to work on protecting civilians and get them out of harm's way.
We Are All Hostages
In the early days of the war, Biden was seen as a stalwart defender of Israel. Now he's an obstruction to victory.
