Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu, war cabinet meets with US Secretary of State Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday, November 30 met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli war cabinet in Jerusalem. This would the fourth time that Blinken has arrived in the Jewish state since Israel declared a ground offensive against Hamas on Oct. 7.In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Office announced that Netanyahu “is currently holding a private meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem.” During the meeting, Netanyahu stated that two counterparts will discuss many issues pertaining to ongoing war with Hamas and, “of course, I'd like to talk to you [Blinken] about the next phase” of the hostages release from Hamas captivity.Blinken is accompanied with US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, US State Department Counsellor Derek Chollet and Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues David Satterfield.Before meeting Netanyahu, he held a bilateral talks with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem. The meeting came shortly after a deadly terror attack in Jerusalem. “This is another example of the situation we’re in, the endless war that we are fighting against terror organizations, especially Hamas, in these very complicated and challenging times,” Herzog told Blinken, according to the statement cited by Times of Israel. Israel is “working, praying for and demanding the immediate release of all hostages, and I thank the United States of America for the immense work it is devoting to the release of the hostages,” he added.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently holding a private meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem. pic.twitter.com/9oKQ1LLTNV— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) November 30, 2023After meeting, Blinken to visit Ramallah; will attend UN’s COP28 summit in DubaiAfter he finishes meeting with Netanyahu, Blinken is scheduled to visit Ramallah and then will attend the UN’s COP28 climate summit in Dubai. US Secretary of State arrived in Tel Aviv after attending a NATO-Ukraine Council meeting in Brussels and Skopje, North Macedonia, where NATO foreign ministers and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) discussed Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.During his speech, Blinken stated, “We’d like to see the pause extended because what it has enabled first and foremost is hostages being released, coming home, being reunited with their families.” He continued that the deal has “enabled us to surge humanitarian assistance into the people of Gaza, who so desperately need it.” So, said Blinken, “its continuation, by definition, means that more hostages would be coming home, more assistance would be getting in.”Netanyahu meanwhile clarified that IDF will resume its military operation against Hamas ‘in full force’ after the hostages are released. “There is no way we are not going back to fight to the end,” the Israeli prime minister said. “This is my policy, the entire Cabinet stands behind it, the entire government stands behind it, the soldiers stand behind it, the people stand behind it—this is exactly what we will do.”

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Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu, war cabinet meets with US Secretary of State Blinken

Netanyahu “is currently holding a private meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem," his Office said.

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