United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Middle East on Monday where he will meet with senior leaders to discuss the current ceasefire proposal that would halt Israel’s war against Hamas.
Blinken’s trip to the region, where he’ll meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in Cairo, Egypt, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, comes after four Israeli hostages were rescued in an Israeli operation that also resulted in the deaths of scores of Palestinians as well as an Israeli government shake-up.
Almog Meir Jan, 22; Andrey Kozlov, 27; Shlomi Ziv, 41; and Noa Argamani, 26, were rescued Saturday from two separate apartment buildings near each another in Nuseirat, Gaza. Israeli forces were able to quickly rescue Argamani, but guards with the three male hostages were not taken by surprise, and a firefight ensued, according to the Washington Post. The Israeli military responded with aerial support.
More than 200 Palestinians were killed and over 400 were injured, Gaza’s government media office said, though those numbers cannot be independently verified.
“The number of casualties remains unknown at this stage,” Israel Defense Forces Spokesman LTC (S.) Nadav Shoshani wrote on X. “However, all statistics regarding human lives released by a murderous terrorist organization should not be trusted. The organization releasing information regarding civilian lives is the same one holding 120 Israelis hostage for the past 246 days.”
Israeli officials blamed Hamas for the death toll incurred during the rescue operation, arguing that Hamas put them in harm’s way by holding the hostages in civilian populations. Israeli officials also alleged that one of the individuals holding the hostages was an Al Jazeera employee, but the outlet wrote Abdullah Al-Jamal, whose home the three male hostages were found in, had never worked for them and had only contributed to an op-ed in 2019.
“Al Jazeera Media Network confirms that Abdullah Al-Jamal has never worked with the Network, but had contributed to an Op-ed in 2019 and that these allegations are completely unfounded. The Network also stresses that these allegations are a continuation of the process of slander and misinformation aimed at harming Al Jazeera’s reputation, professionalism, and independence,” the outlet said.
Blinken’s trip comes as the world waits to see whether Israel and Hamas will agree to the current ceasefire proposal on the table. The deal, which the U.S. has said was an Israeli-constructed proposal similar to a previous iteration from Hamas, has yet to be agreed upon though it has widespread international support from governments hoping to see an end to the war.
The first phase of the ceasefire would last for about six weeks and would include the return of women, children, and other vulnerable hostages Hamas is holding; the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel; withdrawal of Israeli troops from populated areas of Gaza; and the surging of humanitarian aid into the strip. The second phase would include the release of all the remaining living hostages as well as the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza altogether.
Israel has been unwilling to any ceasefire proposal that would affect keeping Hamas intact and in power in Gaza while Hamas has demanded that any deal include a complete and total end of the war. It remains unclear exactly how the proposal President Joe Biden recently outlined publicly would solve those competing stances.
“The United States is supporting all efforts to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas, including American citizens,” U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement. “This includes through ongoing negotiations or other means. The hostage release and ceasefire deal that is now on the table would secure the release of all the remaining hostages together with security assurances for Israel and relief for the innocent civilians in Gaza.”
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If this proposal falls through, the U.S. could decide to try and negotiate with Hamas for the release of the five Americans believed to be held in Gaza by the terrorist group, according to NBC News. The five Americans are Edan Alexander, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Omer Neutra, and Keith Siegel.
Netanyahu is facing new domestic turmoil after Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz announced his departure from the emergency government on Sunday. Gantz called for new elections to take place this fall. There are other ultranationalist members of Netanyahu’s governing coalition who have consistently called on the prime minister to carry out what they want to see regarding the war.