Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he held talks on Tuesday with visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Jerusalem on joining forces to counter threats from Iran.
"During the meeting, the Iranian threat and the need for both countries to unite forces against it were raised," Netanyahu's office said in a statement, adding that "the prime minister thanked the US secretary of state for the United States' support in the fight against Iran's axis of evil and terror," referring the Iran-aligned armed groups in the region.
Netanyahu said he discussed post-war Gaza governance with visiting top US diplomat Antony Blinken, also expressing hope that the killing of Hamas's leader would help hostage release.
"Both sides discussed the issue of governance in Gaza in the aftermath of the war. The prime minister emphasised that the elimination of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar could have a positive impact on the return of the hostages" held in Gaza for more than a year, Netanyahu's office said in a statement issued after the meeting with Secretary of State Blinken in Jerusalem.
Blinken urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to capitalize on the killing of Hamas's leader to work towards a Gaza ceasefire.
Blinken also pressed for more aid to be allowed into the Palestinian territory as concerns rise for tens of thousands of civilians trapped by fighting in the hard-to-reach north.
Blinken "underscored the need to capitalize on Israel's successful action to bring Yahya Sinwar to justice by securing the release of all hostages and ending the conflict in Gaza in a way that provides lasting security for Israelis and Palestinians alike," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said after Blinken’s talks in Jerusalem.
Blinken also "emphasized the need for Israel to take additional steps to increase and sustain the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza and ensure that assistance reaches civilians throughout Gaza," Miller said.
The trip comes little more than a week after the United States threatened to withhold some US aid to Israel without progress in delivering assistance to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where the United Nations has described a catastrophic situation.
Blinken is paying his 11th visit to the region since the unprecedented October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas which prompted a relentless Israeli military operation in Gaza.
With the US election just two weeks away, President Joe Biden asked Blinken to return to press for progress, seeing new hope after Israel's killing of Sinwar, the October 7 mastermind who was described by US officials as uncompromising in negotiations.
Blinken on previous trips has sought to prevent the conflict from escalating into a regional war. But Israel since last month has been striking across Lebanon to destroy Hezbollah, which like Hamas is backed by Iran's clerical rulers.
Miller said Blinken again called for a "diplomatic resolution" in Lebanon and compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701 of 2006 which called for the long-term disarmament of Hezbollah but also a withdrawal of Israeli forces from its northern neighbor.
With AFP
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