Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON DC, 22nd Dec. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Thursday said that the US expects to see the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas “move to a lower intensity phase,” in his year end press conference at the State Department.
“It’s clear that the conflict will move and needs to move to a lower intensity phase,” Antony Blinken said.
He added that it is Washington’s expectation and willingness that Israeli forces “shift to more targeted operations, with a smaller number of forces, that’s really focused in on dealing with the leadership of Hamas, the tunnel network, and a few other critical things”.
“It is vitally important how Israel conducts its operations,” he said.
“Again, focus on protecting civilians, minimizing harm to them, maximizing assistance getting to them.”
Blinken’s remarks came after growing outrage around the world and to some extent within the US over the soaring Palestinian civilian deaths resulted from the intensification of aerial bombardments and ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces in the Gaza Strip.
Blinken defended the administration taking the conflict in Gaza as an example and complaining about having heard “virtually no one saying, demanding of Hamas that it stop hiding behind civilians, that it lay down its arms, that it surrender’ when asked by a reporter whether the Joe Biden administration has any intent to rethink its diplomatic strategy in ways that will change the dynamics of a series of concurring conflicts still unfolding around the world.
Biden was asked by the press corps accompanied him on a trip in Milwaukee to comment on 20,000 Palestinian deaths in the conflict in Gaza that was expected to reach on Monday.
Joe Biden said in a short answer, “It’s tragic,” without elaborating.
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