US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said Palestinian civilians should be allowed to return to their homes and rejected statements by Israeli officials calling for the mass displacement of Gaza residents.
At a news conference in Doha on Sunday alongside Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Blinken said the United Nations can play a crucial role in allowing displaced civilians in Gaza to return to their homes as Israel passes to a “lower intensity phase”. ” of his military campaign.
“They [Palestinian civilians] “They cannot – they must not – be pressured to leave Gaza,” he said.
The top US diplomat condemned the murder of Al Jazeera journalist Hamza Dahdouh, son of Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief and correspondent Wael Dahdouh, calling it an “unimaginable tragedy”.
Hamza was killed along with fellow journalist Mustafa Thuraya in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza on Sunday.
Israeli forces previously killed several members of Wael Dahdouh’s immediate family in an airstrike.
“I can’t even begin to imagine the horror he has experienced, not once, but twice,” Blinken said.
“That is why we insist on the need – the imperative – not only to ensure that humanitarian assistance can reach the people who need it, but also that people are protected from harm caused by this conflict.”
Tamer Qarmout, assistant professor of public policy at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, told Al Jazeera that while Blinken has expressed regret over the loss of Dahdouh, the top US diplomat has not held Israel responsible for the killing. journalists in Gaza.
The US State Department has issued two emergency declarations in recent weeks to drop bombs on Israel without congressional oversight.
At the news conference in Doha, Blinken said that all US arms deliveries to any country, including Israel, are made on the condition that humanitarian law is respected.
He said that while Israel has the right to attack Hamas and ensure the group can no longer launch attacks, it is “imperative” to protect civilians.
“As operations wind down, it will certainly be easier to ensure that civilians are not harmed and will also ensure that more assistance can reach the people who need it,” he said.
Qatar’s Al Thani said the world is getting used to images of civilian suffering in Gaza.
“This is a great test for our humanity,” he said.
According to Palestinian officials, at least 22,835 people have been killed – including 9,600 children – in Israel’s attack on Gaza since October 7. According to Israeli authorities, at least 1,140 people were killed in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, and around 240 more were captured.
Al Thani said the assassination of Hamas deputy political leader Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut has affected Qatar’s efforts to negotiate between the Palestinian group and Israel over the release of captives.
Previously, Qatar played a key role in mediating a seven-day truce between Israel and Hamas in which more than 100 captives and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were released from Israeli jails.
Al Thani said Doha continues to negotiate and that he and Blinken discussed efforts to reach a ceasefire and secure the release of more captives.
Blinken warns the Houthis
The top American diplomat was in Doha as part of a week-long diplomatic tour of the Middle East, seeking to calm what he said is a “moment of deep tension” in the region amid Israel’s three-month war in Gaza.
Since the war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah have frequently exchanged cross-border fire.
Dozens of Lebanese civilians and more than 140 Hezbollah members have been killed in the fighting, raising concerns that the Gaza war could become a regional conflagration.
On a separate front, Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen have fired missiles at Israel and carried out several attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea in what they say are acts of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The group, which controls much of Yemen, says it is targeting ships bound for Israel.
The attacks have led many global shipping companies, including Maersk, to avoid the Red Sea shipping route, and the United States has responded by creating a multinational maritime force to protect shipping routes in the region.
Blinken noted how Houthi attacks were “harming people around the world” as shipping costs rose and deliveries of goods took longer. He stressed that Washington is interested in ensuring that the war does not spread.
“More than a dozen countries have made clear that the Houthis will be responsible for future attacks,” Blinken said, referring to the US-led coalition.
Qarmout told Al Jazeera that it is clear that the Americans are sending a clear message from Doha to neighboring Iran, which supports the Houthis, that [the US] He does not want to see an escalation of the war.
“There is war fatigue… It is also an election year in the United States. “I think the Americans have no desire for this conflict to escalate and involve other parties like Hezbollah and Iran,” Qarmout said.
“So I think there is a sincere willingness on the part of Americans to engage in diplomacy and make some progress.”
