United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken has strongly called out nations of not demanding that the terrorist organisation Hamas stop hiding behind civilians, lay down its arms, and surrender.
In a press briefing at the US State Department on Wednesday, Blinken said that many countries are urging the end to the ongoing conflict, but how is it possible that there are no demands made of the aggressor?
"What is striking to me is that even as, again, we hear many countries urging the end to this conflict, which we would all like to see, I hear virtually no one saying--demanding of Hamas that it stop hiding behind civilians, that it lay down its arms, that it surrender. This is over tomorrow if Hamas does that. This would have been over a month ago, six weeks ago, if Hamas had done that," Blinken said.
"How can it be that there are no demands made of the aggressor and only demands made of the victim?" he added.
Blinken's remarks coincide with ongoing negotiations by the UN Security Council on a resolution that would suspend hostilities and encourage the delivery of greater humanitarian supplies to the devastated Gaza Strip, CNN reported.
"Understandably, everyone would like to see this conflict end as quickly as possible," said Blinken at the end-of-year press availability, adding, "if it ends with Hamas remaining in place and having the capacity and the stated intent to repeat October 7th again and again and again, that's not in the interests of Israel; it's not in the interests of the region; it's not in the interests of the world."
The US voted against a cease-fire request at the larger UN General Assembly earlier this month and has previously blocked proposals in the UNSC, CNN reported.
Israel's strongest ally, the US, has denounced the Hamas attack that claimed more than 1,200 lives on October 7.
Nonetheless, senior US officials, like President Joe Biden, have urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take more significant actions to preserve innocent lives while waging his campaign against Hamas in reaction to the growing number of civilian deaths in Gaza as a result of Israel's response.
The conflict in Gaza escalated after the October 7 attack by Hamas, where about 2,500 terrorists breached the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip, leading to casualties and the seizure of hostages.
Israel has characterized its Gaza offensive as targeting Hamas' infrastructure to eliminate the entire terror group while making efforts to minimize civilian casualties.
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