Blinken: The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is catastrophic (Getty)
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that Washington will continue working to reach an immediate ceasefire for 6 weeks in Gaza, while his assistant, Barbara Leaf, confirmed work to open more land corridors in addition to work to open the sea corridor to Gaza.
Blinken explained that the six-week ceasefire efforts come “as part of the hostage release deal,” noting that the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is “a heartbreaking matter.”
The American minister added that his country seeks to achieve a two-state solution "to ensure that Palestinians and Israelis share equal standards of freedom and security," he said.
Ongoing negotiations
For her part, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf said that the need for aid is urgent and great in Gaza, and that the United States makes the issue of aid to the Strip a priority.
The American official confirmed that Washington is working to open the sea corridor to Gaza, in addition to airdrop operations and working to open more land corridors and the flow of aid, and that "more aid can be brought in via land."
The US Assistant Secretary of State explained that the negotiations are continuing and have not stopped and that they are committed to negotiating and “working with the Qataris, Egyptians and Israelis,” saying, “We hope that the Hamas movement will move towards an agreement soon, and it is urgent to reach a truce in which the hostages return to their families and the hostilities stop.”
The Qatari Foreign Ministry said today that Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani reviewed developments in Gaza with the US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and discussed with her efforts to reach a ceasefire and discussions about bringing aid to those besieged in the Strip.
📽️Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs @MBA_AlThani_ receives the US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs #Qatar_Foreign Affairs pic.twitter.com/Tjy2HGxwZN
- Qatari Foreign Ministry (@MofaQatar_AR) March 12, 2024
In turn, CIA Director William Burns said that Israel can and must do more to ensure that aid reaches Gaza.
Burns added that children in Gaza face very difficult conditions, especially in the northern Strip, stressing that aid does not reach there in the required quantities "in circumstances where the conflict is still ongoing."
This comes in light of the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza for the 158th day, leaving tens of thousands of victims martyred, wounded and missing, most of them children and women, and massive destruction to residential buildings and vital facilities, amid famine looming over the besieged Strip and the occupation restricting the entry of aid.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies