US secretary of state Antony Blinken, in Israel to push for a Gaza truce, said on Monday ongoing negotiations were “maybe the last” chance to reach an agreement to end the war.
“This is a decisive moment — probably the best, maybe the last, opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a ceasefire and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security,” Blinken said as he met Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
The top US diplomat said President Joe Biden had sent him “to get this agreement to the line and ultimately over the line”.
“It is time for it to get done. It’s also time to make sure that no one takes any steps that could derail this process,” Blinken said.
“We’re working to make sure that there is no escalation, that there are no provocations, that there are no actions that in any way could move us away from getting this deal over the line, or, for that matter, escalating the conflict to other places, and to greater intensity.”
Blinken, on his ninth visit to the Middle East since Hamas’s 7 October attack on Israel, is scheduled to meet later on Monday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The visiting secretary of state said it was a “fraught moment” in Israel and warned against any moves that could heighten regional tensions, following threats from Iran and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah to avenge the recent killings of two militant leaders.
Herzog, who holds a largely ceremonial role, said Israelis wanted to see the return “as soon as possible” of hostages still held in Gaza since the 7 October attack that triggered the war.
“There is no greater humanitarian objective, and there’s no greater humanitarian cause, than bringing back our hostages,” Herzog told Blinken.
Speaking in Tel Aviv on Monday, before meeting Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the top US diplomat said he was also working to de-escalate other regional tensions fuelled by the war in Gaza.
Blinken is scaling up US diplomatic pressure to try and reach a deal to end the 10-month conflict after the United States put forward proposals last week in a bid to close the gaps between the warring parties.
“This is a decisive moment – probably the best, maybe the last, opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a ceasefire and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security,” Blinken said on his ninth trip to the region since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October.
“I’m here as part of an intensive diplomatic effort on President Biden’s instructions to try to get this agreement to the line and ultimately over the line … It is time for everyone to get to yes and to not look for any excuses to say no,” Blinken added.
“It is time for it to get done. It’s also time to make sure that no one takes any steps that could derail this process,” he went on to say.
The US and other Western leaders have called on Iran and its allies to refrain from anticipated attacks on Israel in retaliation for the recent killings of senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah.
Worldwide concern that Israel’s war will escalate into an all-out regional conflict multiplied after the assassinations last month of Hamas’s political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Fuad Shukr, a top commander of the Lebanese group Hezbollah, in Beirut.
“We’re working to make sure that there is no escalation, that there are no provocations, that there are no actions that in any way could move us away from getting this deal over the line, or, for that matter, escalating the conflict to other places, and to greater intensity,” Blinken said.
The diplomat is later scheduled to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Herzog, who holds a largely ceremonial role, said Israelis wanted to see the return “as soon as possible” of captives held in Gaza since Hamas snatched them during its October 7 attack. Israel’s war began after Hamas’s surprise attack.
“There is no greater humanitarian objective, and there’s no greater humanitarian cause, than bringing back our hostages,” Herzog told Blinken.
The US, Egypt and Qatar have been acting as mediators in a number of indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
The last round of talks ended on Friday in Qatar, with no resolution. It is expected to resume again in Cairo, Egypt this week.
Hamas has been insisting that the ceasefire end the war permanently while Israel has said any deal should not limit it from continuing the war despite repeated US statements for the deal to end the conflict.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, Israel’s deadly attacks continue, with the death toll from Israel’s bombardment now more than 40,000, according to Palestinian health authorities.
