The president of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, advocated this Thursday for a definitive ceasefire between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, during a meeting in the occupied West Bank with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“Abbas emphasized the urgent need to establish a complete ceasefire in Gaza and end Israeli aggression, with the aim of not exposing civilians to the bombing, violence and destruction inflicted by the Israeli war machine,” indicated the official Palestinian news agency, Wafa.
Furthermore, during the meeting that took place in Ramallah, The Palestinian president “underlined the importance of increasing humanitarian, medical and food aidas well as to quickly supply water, electricity and fuel to the Palestinian people in Gaza.”
Blinken made an official visit to Israel and the occupied West Bank this Thursday, as it has done on several occasions since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out on October 7.
This time, The visit occurs on the seventh day of the truce between Hamas and Israel, after a pact negotiated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt which includes the exchange of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails for hostages held by Hamas, in addition to the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
On this tour, Blinken had set the goal of extending the truce as much as possible, in the face of increasingly strong international pressure for a permanent ceasefire.
(Also read: Israel: Blinken tells Netanyahu it is ‘imperative’ to protect civilians in Gaza)
In his meeting with Abbas, Blinken “discussed ongoing efforts to accelerate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, including by maximizing humanitarian pauses,” the State Department said in a statement.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed to Blinken this Thursday that his Army will resume the offensive in the Gaza Strip, where there are already more than 15,000 dead, most of them children and women, as well as almost two million displaced people who live in the midst of a serious humanitarian crisis due to the collapse of hospitals, the shortage of housing, drinking water, food, medicine, electricity. and fuel.
During the meeting, President Abbas handed Blinken a complete dossier documenting “the crimes of the Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank.”including Jerusalem, which includes evidence of murder, destruction, ethnic cleansing and other atrocities committed by the Israeli occupation forces,” Wafa said.
(You can read: Israel investigates Hamas report on the death of three hostages: two minors and their mother)
Earlier, Blinken asked Netanyahu that Israeli settlers who attack Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, causing injuries and even death, must be brought to justice.
(Also: UN Secretary General denounces a ‘huge humanitarian catastrophe’ in Gaza)
Besides, The American official advocated the creation of a Palestinian state, while Abbas asked Blinken for Palestine to obtain full membership in the United Nations.
“The military and security solutions (to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict) have demonstrated their failure and will not achieve security and stability in the region,” Abbas stressed.
EFE
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