Rubio due in Israel to discuss war on Gaza after Israeli strike on Qatar

US caput of authorities says Trump was ‘not happy’ astir the attack, but the incidental volition not alteration ties with Israel.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio is owed to get successful Israel, wherever helium is acceptable to conscionable Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arsenic tensions equine successful the Middle East implicit the Israeli onslaught connected Qatar past week.

Rubio’s trip, which begins connected Sunday, comes aft US President Donald Trump criticised Israel implicit the unprecedented onslaught connected Hamas leaders successful the Qatari capital, Doha.

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Before departing for Israel, Rubio told reporters that portion Trump was “not happy” astir the strike, it was “not going to alteration the quality of our narration with the Israelis”.

But helium added that the US and Israel would sermon its interaction connected efforts for a truce successful Israel’s warfare connected Gaza.

“The president wants this to beryllium finished with. And finished with meaning 48 hostages released each astatine once. Hamas is nary longer a threat, truthful we tin determination connected to the adjacent phase, which is, however bash you rebuild Gaza?” helium said.

“How bash you supply security? How bash you marque definite Hamas ne'er comes backmost again? That’s the president’s priority… And portion of what we’re going to person to sermon arsenic portion of this sojourn is however the events of past week with Qatar interaction that.”

Rubio said it had yet to beryllium determined who would bash that, who would wage for it and who would beryllium successful complaint of the process.

Israel’s onslaught connected Qatar, a large non-NATO state of the US, targeted Hamas leaders who had gathered to sermon a caller ceasefire connection successful the warfare connected Gaza enactment distant by the US. The enactment survived, but six radical were killed, including a Qatari information officer.

US officials described it arsenic a unilateral escalation that did not service US oregon Israeli interests.

The onslaught besides led to wide condemnation from different Arab states, and derailed ceasefire and captive talks brokered by Qatar.

Al Jazeera’s Rosiland Jordan, reporting from Washington, DC, noted that the US and Qatar person expressed a committedness to proceed the propulsion for peace.

“However, precocious connected Saturday, Netanyahu said connected societal media that it’s Israel’s presumption that the Hamas enactment needs to beryllium driven retired of Qatar, due to the fact that successful Israel’s view, Hamas is not committed to peace,” she said.

“So there’s going to beryllium definite discussions astir the adjacent steps forward, fixed that Trump has said helium wants to spot an extremity to the warfare successful Gaza,” she said.

For its part, Hamas has repeatedly said it was consenting to merchandise each of the captives it took from Israel and cede power of Gaza to an interim Palestinian administration, successful speech for an extremity to the warfare and a afloat Israeli withdrawal from the territory.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, has called for the expulsion of Gaza’s colonisation and signed an statement connected Thursday to determination up with a colony enlargement program successful the occupied West Bank that would marque immoderate aboriginal Palestinian authorities virtually impossible.

On Friday, the United Nations General Assembly voted to backmost a revival of the two-state solution, successful unfastened defiance of Israeli opposition.

Israeli allies, France and the United Kingdom, alongside respective different Western nations, are acceptable to recognise Palestinian statehood astatine a UN gathering this period retired of exasperation astatine Israel’s behaviour successful the warfare successful Gaza warfare and successful the occupied West Bank.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies