US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken yesterday warned Iran, during a tense session of the UN Security Council, against becoming directly involved in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip or through its agents, and from continuing to attack American citizens and interests in the region, threatening that his country will respond “decisively and quickly” to any attempt by Iran to expand the scope of the war.
At the same session, UN Secretary-General António Guterres criticized the unjustified behavior of the two sides in the conflict and called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent delivery of aid to the besieged Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, while calling for the release of the hostages recently captured by Hamas “immediately and unconditionally”.
As part of the joint Arab coordination, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said that Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan was present, accompanied by his counterparts. Egyptian Sameh Shukri, Palestinian Riyad Al-Maliki and Jordanian Ayman Al-Safadi, Security Council session. Prince Faisal bin Farhan said Arab ministers called for “an immediate ceasefire, an immediate lifting of the siege of Gaza, a return to the peace process and a real and serious approach to resolving the current grievances of the Palestinian people.” .
Meanwhile, Palestinian Radio reported last night that Israeli planes launched violent raids in various areas of Gaza, from the south to the north of the Strip.
In turn, French President Emmanuel Macron has joined a group of Western political leaders sympathetic to Israel in its war against Hamas. Yesterday he visited the Jewish State and called for the formation of an international coalition against “Hamas” on the model of the international alliance to fight “ISIS”, and to concentrate efforts now in two directions: first of all to free the kidnapped and seek an opening political horizons that strengthen the Palestinian pacifist camp and weaken terrorism. Subsequently, Macron met in Ramallah with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who informed his guest to recognize the State of Israel and its right to exist for 40 years, but also asked Israel to recognize a Palestinian state and also its right to exist.
Regarding the arrival of aid to the sector, Egypt continued to receive humanitarian aid provided by several countries, as well as other local charities. The Egyptian Red Crescent has announced the delivery of a fourth shipment of aid to its Palestinian counterpart via the Rafah crossing. Yesterday, Cairo affirmed its efforts for greater international movement to support the “sustainability” of bringing aid to Gaza and “not subject it to variable negotiations”, stressing that the Rafah crossing “has not been and will never be closed ”.