Blinken will visit the region this weekend (Reuters)
A statement by the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Army stated that the Commander of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Charles Brown, discussed in a video call with his Israeli counterpart, Herzi Halevy, the ongoing operations in the Gaza Strip, while US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visits the region at the end of the week to conduct diplomatic contacts regarding the post-war period in Gaza. .
Brown stressed the need to protect civilians and not restrict relief aid. He also stressed the importance of Israel's planning for post-war conditions, according to the statement.
Brown had said in previous statements that Israel's declared goals in its war on the Gaza Strip were "very large," indicating the impossibility of achieving them, stressing that the longer the war lasted, the more difficult it became.
In the same context, officials at the White House and the US State Department said in press statements yesterday, Wednesday, that Blinken will visit the region over the weekend.
The officials stated that Blinken will hold various contacts with the parties within the scope of assessments, regarding the situation in the region after the end of the war on Gaza, how to manage the Strip at this stage, deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, and recognize a possible independent Palestinian state.
This comes at a time when there is talk of concluding a prisoner exchange deal between the Israeli government and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). Israeli Channel 12 reported that Mossad chief David Barnea revealed to the Israeli War Council a “document of principles” for the deal, which includes in the first stage the release of... 35 Israeli detainees in the Gaza Strip, including women, the wounded, and the elderly, in exchange for a truce for 35 days.
She added, "It is possible after that to extend the calm for an additional week, in order to conduct negotiations on the possibility of completing the second phase of the deal, which includes the release of the youth, and all those whom Hamas describes as soldiers."
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set red lines for any prospective deal.
Netanyahu said - in a video clip he published yesterday, Wednesday - that it will not be done at any cost, and that he has red lines, including: not stopping the war, not withdrawing army forces from the Gaza Strip, and not releasing thousands of Palestinian prisoners.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies