Blinken Continues Diplomatic Tour With Jordan Trip

Facts

• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed on the sidelines of a UN-backed aid conference at the Dead Sea in Jordan on Tuesday.¹
• This comes as he has been on a diplomatic tour in the Middle East to try to push for a cease-fire in Gaza, previously meeting Israeli officials and families of hostages in Tel Aviv.²
• Also on Tuesday, Blinken told reporters that Hamas welcoming the passing of a UN Security Council resolution in support of a cease-fire was 'a hopeful sign,' but that the armed group still had to accept a proposal put forward by the Biden admin.³
• Meanwhile, the UN said that both Israel and Hamas may be guilty of war crimes regarding the deadly raid in central Gaza that rescued four Israeli hostages but killed scores of Palestinian civilians on Saturday.⁴
• Israeli forces may have violated 'the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution' in the raid, while Hamas is said to have put 'the lives of Palestinian civilians, as well as the hostages themselves, at added risk from the hostilities' by holding the hostages in such densely populated areas.⁴
• Al Jazeera claimed in a report on Tuesday that Israeli forces had used civilian vehicles to infiltrate the area and indiscriminately killed civilians near the buildings in which the hostages were being held. Hamas also claimed that the raid killed three Israeli hostages, though this has not been verified.⁵

Sources: ¹The National, ²BBC News, ³State, ⁴Reuters and ⁵Al Jazeera.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by The Forward. A guaranteed end to the war will ensure increased humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave, preserve Israel's security, and create a better 'day after' in Gaza without Hamas in power. If Hamas is ready to engage constructively, the Israeli government must stand behind the cease-fire plan. Hamas must seize this moment and stop the fighting.
• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. While the world tries to tie Israel's hands behind its backs, Hamas leaders like Yahya Sinwar are relishing every additional civilian casualty. Hamas' leadership openly believes that tragic civilian casualties are 'necessary sacrifices' in the group's long war against Israel. It is Hamas, not Israel, that wants to continue this war.
• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. It should be clear after almost eight months of grinding brutality that Israel's true goal is to destroy Gaza and starve its people. Israel's 'rescue operation' — which the US participated in — killed over 250 people, yet both countries acted as if this would somehow improve the situation. Israel is committing daily massacres in Gaza, and the US is fully complicit.

Predictions