U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken said on Saturday that he had “real concern about the inadequacy of the [humanitarian] assistance that’s getting to” civilians in the Gaza Strip.
Blinken was answering a question at a press conference in Laos, regarding the latest reports of the Israeli military cutting aid into the northern Gaza Strip amid an intense operation in the area over the past several days.
“We’ve been very directly engaged with Israel on the imperative of addressing the humanitarian needs of people in Gaza,” said Blinken.
“I have a continuous obligation to ensure that assistance we’re providing is done in accordance with the law,” he added, referring to domestic laws prohibiting the United States from providing military assistance to foreign nations that commit “gross violation of human rights.”
Although Blinken’s reply was somewhat vague, he stressed that the situation in the Palestinian enclave is an “ongoing responsibility and one that I take very seriously.”
On the Lebanese front, Blinken emphasized that Israel has the right to defend itself, and that it “has a clear and very legitimate interest” in entering southern Lebanon and eliminating the Hezbollah threat. Yet he added that the Biden administration was “deeply concerned” about the Gaza war spreading to additional fronts in the region.
“We’re working very hard through deterrence and through diplomacy to prevent [the spread of the war] from happening,” Blinken stressed.
Speaking about the goal of resolving the conflict in Lebanon, Blinken said that “the people of Lebanon have an interest … in the state asserting itself and taking responsibility for the country and its future.”
He further mentioned U.N. Security Council resolutions 1559 and 1701 that call for the disarmament of non-state actors like Hezbollah and the distancing of armed forces north of the Lebanese border—two conditions that have not been met in the last 24 years.
In September, Hebrew media reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was considering a plan to besiege the northern Gaza Strip, including Gaza City.
The initiative, named the “Generals’ Plan,” was crafted by Maj. Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland, a former head of the Israeli National Security Council, the IDF Operations Directorate and the IDF Planning Directorate.
The plan has two stages. First, the evacuation of up to 300,000 civilians from the northern Strip, clearing it of noncombatants; and second, imposing a strict blockade on the area in which no humanitarian aid enters and no entry or departure of persons is allowed.
The plan was stated to be compliant with international law, as long as civilians are given reasonable time to evacuate.
The IDF has urged Palestinian civilians to leave the Jabaliya area since Oct. 1. While some have left, it is clear that some have remained amid Hamas’s pressure on the population to stay put.