Blinken says the truce proposal presented to Hamas is “very intelligent” – Current Affairs

“Right now a very intelligent proposal is on the table, Hamas has to say yes, this has to happen,” said Blinken, quoted by the liberal Israeli daily Haaretz, to protesters who were in front of his hotel.

Blinken, who arrived in Israel on Tuesday night as part of a regional tour to promote a second ceasefire – after almost seven months of war in Gaza and more than 34,500 deaths – insisted to the protesters, who held signs calling for help to free the hostages, that the US will not rest until they return home.

“We will not rest, we will not stop until you are reunited with your loved ones, so please stay strong, keep the faith, we will be with you every day until we do,” Blinken said in what is his seventh visit to the region since the Hamas attack on October 7th.

The Secretary of State met today in Tel Aviv with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, to whom he reiterated his commitment to reaching a truce agreement “now”, and blamed Hamas in case of failure, despite the Islamists not having changed the their initial demands, including a total end to the war, which may now have turned into a months-long ceasefire.

“We are determined to achieve a ceasefire that brings the hostages home, and we are determined to achieve it now. And the only reason we couldn’t do it would be because of Hamas. There is a proposal on the table. And, as we said, no delays, no excuses. The time is now,” said Blinken, according to a statement from the Israeli presidential spokesperson.

The US Secretary of State also wanted to remember the inhabitants of Gaza who “suffer from the crossfire caused by Hamas”, according to the statement, and assured that he was working to ensure that they have access to food, medicine, water and shelter.

Blinken is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his office in Jerusalem today to discuss progress towards a possible ceasefire.

Hamas’ response to the latest counter-offer of a truce is expected in the coming hours and is expected to include the exchange of 33 live hostages for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners, as well as the return of Gazans displaced to the north.

After 208 days of war, the Gaza Strip is in a state of devastation, with 80% of its population forcibly displaced, water shortages and an extreme lack of food, which has brought around 200,000 people in the north to the brink. of hunger, in addition to an increasing proliferation of diseases.