The United States remains “intensely focused” on the release of hostages held in Gaza despite the resumption of fighting between Israel and Hamas after a week of ceasefire, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.
“We remain intensely focused on getting everyone home, on getting the hostages back, which is something I also worked on today.”he declared after meeting with the foreign ministers of the Arab countries on the sidelines of COP28 in Dubai.
The Foreign Minister met with the heads of diplomacy of the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, as well as a representative of the Palestinian Authority, during his short visit to Dubai.
“We are determined to do everything we can to get everyone [os reféns] to their families, including continuing the process that has been working for seven days,” Blinken said, referring to the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israel during the seven-day truce, which ended Friday.
A total of 110 hostages have been released since the start of the conflict, including 105 during the ceasefire. The majority of these were Israeli women and minors. According to Israeli authorities, 137 of them remain in the hands of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and other affiliated groups in Gaza. In return, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners.
Blinken spent the day in Dubai, where dozens of world leaders are attending COP28, the UN climate conference, after visiting Israel and the occupied West Bank.
Source: DN
