Abbas backs Blinken's plan for unified governance for Gaza and West Bank

As a productive discussion, this is how the highest representative of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, described his meeting with the president of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmud Abbas, in Ramallah, West Bank, this Wednesday, January 10.

During his conversation with Abbas, Blinken put on the table possible administrative reforms and the steps for the creation of an eventual Palestinian state, according to a spokesman for the Secretary of State.

At the meeting, the Palestinian leader supported Washington's proposal for a single authority to govern the Palestinian Territories. “Gaza is an integral part of the Palestinian State. It should not be isolated,” he said in a brief statement quoting Mahmud Abbas.

The statement, published by the Palestinian news agency WAFA, further noted that Abbas stressed that “Palestinians must not be displaced from Gaza or the Israeli-occupied West Bank.”

Likewise, the leader who governs the West Bank in a limited way called for “convening an international peace conference to end the Israeli occupation of the land of the State of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital, to achieve peace and security for all.” added the note issued by WAFA.

But autocratic leadership for the Palestinian Territories, backed by the West, lacks legitimacy in the view of many Palestinians.

Abbas, 88, has not run in elections since 2005 and lacks support among his people. The Palestinian Authority governs parts of the West Bank, under interim peace agreements reached in the 1990s, but leads limited control and cooperates on security matters with Israel as the territory has been occupied by the Jewish-majority country. since 1967.

Joe Biden's Government recognizes this challenge, which is why Blinken stressed that the Palestinian Authority also “has the responsibility to reform itself, to improve its governance.” At the same time, on Tuesday, the United States representative stressed that “Israel must stop taking measures that undermine the Palestinians' ability to govern themselves effectively,” emphasizing the importance of moving toward a two-state solution.

Unified governance and steps toward an eventual Palestinian state: the US postwar plan.

Although the war continues in Gaza – where more than 23,200 people have died in three months, according to the latest report from the local Ministry of Health – Washington proposes a post-war scenario in which a reformed Palestinian Authority, currently headed by Abbas, governs Gaza in addition. of the West Bank.

At the same time, as Blinken noted on the eve of his visit to Ramallah, the United States is promoting the integration of Israel, its great ally in the Middle East, with the rest of the countries in the region, nations that recently asked Blinken to be willing to take that step. , but under the condition of a “practical path” towards the formation of a Palestinian State.

The approach was announced by the Secretary of State after his tour in recent days through Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey, just before arriving in Israel and the West Bank.

But Washington's approach faces serious obstacles. Firstly, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is categorically opposed to the creation of an eventual Palestinian state alongside Israel. There have been no substantive peace talks between the parties since Netanyahu returned to power in 2009.

And the Government of the Jewish-majority country outlines other plans: last November the Israeli premier announced that Israel will be in charge of security in Gaza for an “indefinite” period.

However, the information issued from Israel is ambiguous. Last Thursday, January 4, the Ministry of Defense indicated that once the war against Hamas is over, its troops will not control Gaza, but rather local “civilian committees” would do so.

Intense Israeli attacks in the central and southern Gaza Strip

While Blinken promotes a post-war plan, on the ground the siege of the Israeli Army does not stop.

Israeli bombing in southern and central Gaza intensified this Wednesday, despite promises made by Israel to its American ally, to move to a more targeted campaign against Hamas to preserve the lives of civilians and withdraw part of its forces. troops from the Palestinian enclave.

The statements by Israeli leaders contrast with the reality on the ground, particularly in central and southern Gaza, where the vast majority of the enclave's population has taken refuge.

In Rafah, near the border with Egypt, he killed 15 members of a single family, including several children and women, and injured 20 people, after their home was destroyed by an Israeli bombardment overnight.

Oum Ayman al Najjar, whose daughter and niece lost their lives in that attack, said she miraculously managed to escape from the rubble. “I don't know how I got out,” he whispered, shivering, in the cold.

Jaber Abu Hamed, who fled his home in Gaza City last month and is taking shelter near the main hospital in Khan Younis, described hearing constant gunshots and explosions. “The ambulance sirens didn't stop” sounding, he said.

The Israeli Army is now concentrating on major operations in the southern city of Khan Younis, where it claims that Hamas members take refuge, and in the refugee camps built in the center of Gazan territory that date back to the 1948 war after the creation of the State of Israel.

Hundreds of people have died in recent days in incessant attacks across the territory, as the war continues with no end in sight.

US and UK repel massive Houthi attack in Red Sea

Yemen's Houthi rebels fired one of their largest volleys of drones and missiles at ships in the Red Sea, forcing U.S. and British forces to shoot down the projectiles in a major clash, officials from both countries said in the news. last hours.

However, “no damage or injuries were reported,” they indicated.

The attack by the Houthis, backed by Iran, took place despite a vote scheduled in the United Nations Security Council for this Wednesday that seeks to condemn and demand an immediate stop to the rebel attacks.

The militia claims its assaults are aimed at stopping Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

However, their actions have failed to stem hostilities and instead endanger a crucial trade route linking Asia and the Middle East to Europe.

The situation raises the risk of a US retaliatory strike against Yemen that could upset a tenuous ceasefire that holds in the Arab world's poorest country.

With Reuters and AP