Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to push for Gaza ceasefire deal

The deal includes an Israeli commitment to a permanent ceasefire even before all the hostages are freed, local media claims.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has held talks in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, pushing a ceasefire plan that the UN Security Council later supported in an effort to halt eight months of war in the Gaza Strip.

Mr Blinken met for around two hours in Jerusalem with Mr Netanyahu and discussed diplomacy towards a ceasefire, US officials said, before the Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution supporting the ceasefire plan.

The text, passed with 14 votes in favour and Russia abstaining, “welcomes” the truce and hostage release proposal announced on May 31 by President Joe Biden and urges “parties to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition”.

Unlike earlier drafts, the resolution states that Israel has “accepted” the US ceasefire proposal.

Under the proposal, Israel would withdraw from Gaza population centres and Hamas would free hostages. The ceasefire would last an initial six weeks, with it extended as negotiators seek a permanent end to hostilities.

However Israeli media reports that the truce includes an Israeli commitment to a permanent ceasefire even before all the hostages are freed.

Israel’s Channel 12 published what it claimed to be Jerusalem’s full peace proposal, which covers the release of all female hostages, both soldiers and civilian, male prisoners over the age of 50 and ill and wounded captives; a total of 33 in all.

According to Channel 12, in the second phase, both sides would “announce restoration of a sustainable calm (defined in the proposal as the permanent cessation of military hostilities)” to begin before the next release of hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners. Israeli forces would also completely withdraw from the Gaza Strip, the broadcaster reports.

Mr Netanyahu’s office denied that Jersualem had agreed to end the war with Hamas before all hostages were released.

In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office said the document published by Channel 12 was “The claim that Israel agreed to end the war before achieving all its goals is a total lie,” the PMO said, according to The Times of Israel.

“Israel will not end the war until all its conditions are met — that is, fighting until Hamas is eliminated, returning all of our hostages, and ensuring that Gaza never again represents a threat to Israel.”

On Sunday local time war cabinet member Benny Gantz, who leads the centrist National Unity party and is a long time rival of Mr Netanyahu, resigned from the government, saying it was due to a lack of long-term strategy for the war in Gaza, among other reasons.

“Fateful strategic decisions are stuck due to hesitancy and procrastination out of political considerations,” Mr Gantz said, in televised remarks.

With AFP