US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Thursday for the protection of aid workers after UN staffers were killed in Gaza.
He argued that a US-backed ceasefire was the best way to ensure their safety.
“We need to see humanitarian sites protected, and that’s something that we continue to raise with Israel,” Blinken told reporters during a visit to Poland.
Blinken, however, also said that Hamas, at war with Israel since its October 7 attack, bore some responsibility.
“We continue to see Hamas hiding in, taking over, and otherwise using these sites to conduct its operations,” Blinken said.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said six of its staffers had been killed in two Israeli air raids on the Nuseirat school and its surroundings, prompting international outrage.
“I think it also underscores, once again, the urgency of reaching a ceasefire,” Blinken said.
Blinken, who has been pushing for a truce deal for weeks, stated that a ceasefire was “the best way to ensure that we have a genuinely protected space throughout Gaza, where humanitarians can not only continue their work but significantly expand it to benefit those who desperately need it.”
With AFP
