US: Blinken heads to Middle East amid Gaza ceasefire
According to ALJAZEERA, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head to the Middle East amid a ceasefire between Israelis and Palestinian factions in Gaza, but tensions have remained high in occupied East Jerusalem after Israeli police escorted Jewish settlers to enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Sunday.
Blinken will depart on Monday for a short visit to Israel, the occupied West Bank, Jordan and Egypt for what will be the administration of President Joe Biden’s highest level in-person meeting on the most recent escalation, which began on May 10 and lasted for 11 days.
At least 248 Palestinians, including 66 children, were killed in the Israeli bombardment of Gaza.
At least 12 Israelis, including two children, were killed by rockets fired from Gaza before the ceasefire was reached on Friday.
“At the request of President Biden, I am traveling to Jerusalem, Ramallah, Cairo, and Amman to meet with the parties to support their efforts to solidify a ceasefire,” the secretary of state said in a tweet on Monday.
The 11 days of fighting were proceeded by protests over the forced expulsion of Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem and crackdowns by Israeli security forces at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
While the administration has been roundly criticised for appearing to take a hands-off approach to the violence, in the statement on Monday, Biden defended Washington’s “quiet, intensive diplomacy to bring about a ceasefire”.
Biden said Blinken will meet with “Israeli leaders about our ironclad commitment to Israel’s security. He will continue our administration’s efforts to rebuild ties to, and support for, the Palestinian people and leaders, after years of neglect.
Blinken’s primary goal will be to shore up the ceasefire in the hope that it will hold and discuss an urgent infusion of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, according to a senior State Department official, who said it was too early for wider peace talks.
