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Blinken Wants Gazans' Safety Assured Before Israel Resumes Attacks

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. EPA
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. EPA
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Blinken Wants Gazans' Safety Assured Before Israel Resumes Attacks

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. EPA
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. EPA

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israel on Thursday it must ensure that Palestinian civilians in southern Gaza are safe and their humanitarian needs are met before resuming military operations there, his spokesperson said.

Blinken met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet in Jerusalem before heading to Ramallah in the occupied West Bank to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

He said a 7-day-old truce between Israel and Hamas had produced results and the United States hoped it would continue.

In the Jerusalem meetings, Blinken reaffirmed US support for Israel’s right to protect itself, spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.
Blinken urged Israel to take every possible measure to avoid civilian harm, Miller said.
"The secretary stressed the imperative of accounting for humanitarian and civilian protection needs in southern Gaza before any military operations there," Miller said.
Washington has urged Israel to narrow the zone of combat and clarify where Palestinian civilians can seek safety in southern Gaza, US officials said on Wednesday, to prevent a repeat of the massive death toll from Israel's northern Gaza attacks.
In a statement following the meeting, Netanyahu's office said the prime minister reaffirmed Israel's commitment to wiping out Hamas, which rules Gaza. Health authorities in Gaza say Israel's bombardment has so far killed more than 15,000 people.
Miller said Blinken urged immediate steps be taken to hold settler extremists accountable for violence against Palestinians in the West Bank and reiterated that Washington remains committed to tangible steps to advance a Palestinian state "living in peace, freedom and security alongside Israel."
The US top diplomat said Washington was focused on helping to secure freedom for more hostages held in Gaza.
At a meeting in Tel Aviv with Israeli President Isaac Herzog earlier in the day, Blinken said: "We have seen over the last week the very positive development of hostages coming home, being reunited with their families.
"And that should continue today. It's also enabled an increase in humanitarian assistance to go to innocent civilians in Gaza who need it desperately," Blinken said.

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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.