U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that a Hamas statement of support for a UN resolution backing a proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza was a 'hopeful sign."
Earlier, Hamas said it accepts the resolution passed by the Security Council and was ready to negotiate over the details. "The U.S. administration is facing a real test to carry out its commitments in compelling the occupation to immediately end the war in an implementation of the UN Security Council resolution," senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken with the families of hostages demonstrating for immediate release of captives from Gaza
(Photo: Moti Kimchi)
Blinken spoke in Tel Aviv where he was on his 10th visit since the start of the war. He talked to the family members of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for over eight months, who were demonstrating outside his hotel, calling for the immediate release of their loved onces. while word coming from the Palestinian militant group's leadership in Gaza is what counts. Conversations on plans for Gaza following the ceasefire would continue on Tuesday afternoon and in the next couple of days, Blinken said. "It's imperative that we have these plans."
The secretary met on Monday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and said later that Netanyahu affirmed his commitment to his own proposal adding that discussions on the future of the Strip, after the war, would continue later on Tuesday and in the coming days.
Blinken is set to travel on to Jordan for a conference on the humanitarian response for Gaza later on Tuesday.