Blinken meets Netanyahu as tensions rise between the US and Israel

The Biden administration accelerated efforts to end the Gaza war on Friday as Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Israeli leaders in Tel Aviv and the CIA director traveled to Qatar, where mediators sought to bridge the rift between Israel and to reduce Hamas over a ceasefire. fire deal.

Mr Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and members of Israel’s war cabinet at a time of high tensions between the allies. US officials have become more vocal in criticizing Netanyahu’s war strategy, including his plan to launch a military offensive in Rafah, the southern Gaza city full of displaced civilians.

But the Biden administration has failed to impose restrictions on military aid to Israel. While the country on Friday supported a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire – a measure that was not adopted – the country also did not demand a permanent halt to Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.

In a statement after their meeting, Mr Netanyahu said he had reiterated to Mr Blinken that Israel recognized the need to protect civilians and guarantee humanitarian aid to Gaza but was committed to sending troops to Rafah despite US insistence not to do that.

“We have no way to defeat Hamas without entering Rafah and eliminating the rest of the battalions there,” Netanyahu said. “And I told him that I hope we will do it with the support of the US. But if we have to, we will do it alone.”

A member of Netanyahu’s war cabinet, Benny Gantz, said in a statement that he thanked Mr. Blinken “for his support for Israel and the deep American commitment to its security.” But Mr. Gantz — a longtime political rival of Mr. Netanyahu who crossed parliamentary lines to join his wartime government — said he had emphasized that Israel must “dismantle Hamas’ military infrastructure, including in Rafah.”

The foreign secretary was making the final stop of a multi-part tour of the Middle East, his sixth since the war began in October. At the same time, a US official said that William J. Burns, the director of the CIA, traveled to Qatar to participate in talks aimed at reaching an agreement between Israel and Hamas that would mark the start of a time-limited ceasefire the firing and the exchange of captured Palestinians. of Israel for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Speaking to reporters in Cairo on Thursday, Mr Blinken said the gap between Hamas and Israel’s negotiating positions was “narrowing” but that striking a deal would be difficult.

He also reiterated the US position that Israel must do more to ensure humanitarian aid reaches desperate Gaza residents at risk of starvation, saying Israel has taken positive steps in recent weeks to ensure aid reaches flow.

Mr Blinken arrived in Israel after stops in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and Egypt on Thursday, where he met with officials to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and plan for the territory’s future governance and security.