The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, assured this Thursday that Gaza civilians will not be targets of Israeli attacks and accused the Islamist group Hamas of using them as “human shields” against Israeli bombings.
“Hamas continues to use civilians as human shields, something that is not new, something it has always done, intentionally putting civilians in danger to protect themselves,” Blinken said at a press conference in Tel Aviv.
Blinken confirmed that he discussed with Israeli authorities the humanitarian needs of the Gaza Strip, bombed by the Israeli army, while defending the right to respond to the deadly Hamas attack.
“We discussed ways to meet the humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza to protect them while Israel conducts its legitimate security operations to defend against terrorism and try to ensure this never happens again,” Blinken said.
The head of North American diplomacy also assured Israeli President Isaac Herzog during a meeting in Tel Aviv that Israel will win the war against Hamas with the help of the United States.
At the beginning of the meeting with Herzog, Blinken maintained that the bloody attack against Israel “is almost impossible to understand” and that it will be “very difficult to erase from minds and hearts.”
“But I felt an intense determination on Israel’s part to win. And the United States is here as an ally to help ensure that it does,” Blinken said.
The US Secretary of State recalled that in the Middle East there is “a path of integration, cooperation and normalization”, which includes the Palestinians, compared to the path chosen by Hamas, of “terror and destruction.”
“The choice is clear. We are together and we will walk together, which is what our people ask of us,” Blinken insisted.
Herzog thanked US President Joe Biden for his “enormous friendship” and stated that Blinken’s visit was proof of that esteem.
“We must be clear (…) that the security and defense that the people of Israel deserve is a priority,” said Herzog, who expressed the hope that peace will return to Israel.
Source: TSF
