Time to end the Gaza conflict

The war in Gaza started with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli official figures. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed 42,718 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which the UN considers trustworthy. Since October 7 a year ago, Israel has accomplished most of its planned goals when it comes to Gaza. Now is the time to turn those triumphs into permanent, calculated achievement, said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as he left Israel, following meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top-ranking officials. Blinken also pressed for more aid permission into besieged Gaza as worries escalated for tens of thousands of civilians confined by fighting in the hard-to-reach north. On the aid to Gaza, Blinken further said he saw progress is there, which is good, but more progress needs to be made and, most importantly, it needs continuation. Blinken says now is the time to end the conflict in Gaza, and urges Israel to evade further escalation with Iran. Israel is fighting Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon and has vowed to hit back against Iran’s October 1 missile strike. Of Israel’s statement to get revenge for Iran’s October 1 missile attack, the US top diplomat said that it is also very significant that Israel react in ways that do not generate more escalation. Blinken’s visit to the region is his 11th since the start of the war in Gaza and his first since Israel-Hezbollah violence intensified to all-out war late last month. In Lebanon, the Israeli military issued a new evacuation call for the south Lebanese city of Tyre on Wednesday, threatening impending operations aimed at Hezbollah. The threat sparked a new departure from the formerly lively city, which is situated on the edge of the Mediterranean coast. The condition is not good, we are evacuating people, said Mortada Mhanna, who heads Tyre’s disaster management unit. One can say that the entire city of Tyre is being evacuated,” said Bilal Kashmar, the unit’s media officer. After Israel, Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia, which has put on hold talks towards a normalization deal with Israel until the creation of a Palestinian state. Antony Blinken urged Israel to seize what he defined as an incredible opportunity to move toward a deal with Saudi Arabia. Earlier US efforts to end the Gaza war and contain the regional consequences have failed, as did an attempt organized by President Joe Biden and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to secure a short-term ceasefire in Lebanon. In his meeting with Netanyahu, Blinken urged his ally to seize on the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza to work toward a ceasefire. Sinwar was the planner of the October 7, 2023 attack that triggered the Gaza war. During his meeting with the Israeli premier in Jerusalem, Blinken stressed the need to benefit from the death of Sinwar, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said. This we will do by securing the release of all hostages and ending the conflict in Gaza in a way that provides lasting security for Israelis and Palestinians alike, he added. Netanyahu told Blinken that Sinwar’s death could have a positive impact on the return of the hostages, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office. Hailing his killing, Netanyahu said it did not mean the war was over, though he added that it could be the start of the end. The militants also took 251 hostages back into Gaza. Ninety-seven are still being held there, including 34 the Israeli military has said are dead.