The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, revealed, this Wednesday, that a proposal for a strong agreement for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where the war between Israel and Hamas continues, is on the table.
“The question is: will Hamas accept it? Does Hamas want to end the suffering it causes?” asked the head of North American diplomacy during a press conference.
Blinken added that Washington is working intensely every day with Qatar and Egypt to reach a deal that could free the hostages, as well as long-term sustainable aid for the enclave.
The American official also urged Israel to open “as many access points as possible” to provide aid to the population. “The maritime corridor does not replace land routes, which continue to be the most critical,” he recalled.
The United States Central Command in the Middle East (Centcom) announced, Wednesday, a new airdrop of humanitarian assistance in North Gaza, “to provide aid to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict”.
“The joint operation included two C-130 aircraft and a C-17 Globemaster III from the United States Air Force and Army soldiers specialized in the aerial delivery of humanitarian assistance supplies,” he explained, in a statement on the social network X.
Specifically, US planes dropped more than 35,700 food packages and about 28,800 bottles of water.
“This was the first time that a C-17 was used to deliver aid since the airdrop began on March 2,” he further highlighted.
Blinken also indicated that he spoke, on Tuesday, with family members of Itay Chen, after the Israeli Army reported the death of the 19-year-old young man, counted as one of the hostages taken to the Gaza Strip on October 7, and that He was killed that day and his body remains held by Hamas.
The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas was triggered by an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian Islamist group on Israeli soil, on October 7, which caused around 1,200 deaths and more than two hundred hostages, according to Israeli authorities.
In retaliation, Israel launched an offensive in the Gaza Strip that has caused more than 31,000 deaths and more than 73,000 injuries, according to Hamas, which has controlled the territory since 2007.
Since then, another 420 people have been killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem by security forces and attacks by Israeli settlers.
The UN reported, Wednesday, that the number of children killed by bombings in Gaza is greater than the number of children killed in all the wars of the last four years.World