U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (French)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that his country is working to release Israeli and "American" prisoners held by Hamas, stressing his confidence in the presence of a command center and tunnels for the movement under the Shifa Medical Complex in the Gaza Strip.
Blinken's remarks come two days after Israeli occupation soldiers stormed the Shifa Medical Complex and assaulted patients and medical staff under the pretext of searching for a Hamas command center under the complex.
Blinken said they had been working "intensively" since the first day of the attempt to release American and Israeli detainees held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.
Blinken told ABC he could not provide details on negotiations to take back the detainees, adding, "But I'm optimistic that we can bring them back."
He noted that he was "confident that there are tunnels and a command center under the Shifa complex in Gaza."
The Future of Gaza
Blinken said that in the future Gaza must be under Palestinian rule, and security must also be provided, stressing that "we have been very clear that Israel cannot reoccupy Gaza."
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Blinken spoke by phone with Israeli emergency cabinet minister Benny Gantz and they discussed "efforts to increase and accelerate the passage of essential humanitarian aid into Gaza."
Blinken stressed "the urgent need to take positive steps to reduce tension in the West Bank, including by addressing the increasing level of extremist settler violence."
Since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, the occupying forces have intensified their attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem, launching daily raids and arrests.
Flood and aggression
It is noteworthy that Israel was established on Arab land occupied in 1948 and annexed Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1967, and has continued throughout its 75 years to kill and arrest Palestinians, expand settlement activity in the West Bank, launch military operations on Gaza and attack Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.
On October 7, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and other Palestinian resistance factions launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against the Israeli occupation, killing more than 1200,<> Israelis so far.
The Palestinian resistance also captured more than 200 Israelis and announced that it wanted to exchange them for more than 6,<> Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.
On the other hand, Israel continues its aggression against the Gaza Strip, bombing homes, schools, hospitals and mosques, resulting in the death of more than 11,30 Palestinians, mostly women and children, in addition to the injury of more than <>,<>, the destruction of the health sector and various vital facilities and entire neighborhoods, and the displacement and starvation of the population.
Source : Al Jazeera + Agencies