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Israel-Hamas war: Blinken in Jordan amid de-escalation push
Published 8 hours agoPublished 8 hours agolast updated 3 minutes agolast updated 3 minutes ago
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is visiting the Middle East for the fourth time since October 7. The US aims to contain the war following the killing of Hamas figure Saleh Arouri in Beirut. DW has the latest.
https://p.dw.com/p/4avx5
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken lands in Amman
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in the Jordanian capital, Amman, for talks on ‘de-escalation’Image: Evelyn Hockstein/AFP
Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
Blinken in Jordan amid attempt to make sure Israel-Hamas war “doesn’t spread”
Germany’s foreign minister to head to Israel, meet top officials
It’s three months to the day since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel
Skip next section 113 killed in Gaza in past 24 hours, Hamas-run ministry says
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113 killed in Gaza in past 24 hours, Hamas-run ministry says
The Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said that 113 people have been killed and 250 more injured in the past 24 hours.
In a social media statement, the ministry put the toll of those killed since October 7 last year in Gaza at 22,835, mostly women and children. Some 58,416 have also been injured, it added.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilian and combatant casualties.
https://p.dw.com/p/4awX4
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Skip next section Baerbock departs for Middle East, calls for end to ‘eternal cycle of violence’
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Baerbock departs for Middle East, calls for end to ‘eternal cycle of violence’
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called for sustainable peace and security in the Middle East, as she left Berlin on Sunday for another visit to the region exactly three months after Hamas’ attack.
“We all feel that this story of terror should not be allowed to go on,” Baerbock said. “The terror must stop. The humanitarian plight of people must stop. The region must break out of this eternal cycle of violence.”
For this to happen, Baerbock said Gaza “must no longer pose a threat to Israel’s existence,” urging Hamas to lay down its arms.
Baerbock also said that to achieve this the people in Gaza and the West Bank needed the chance to live in “security, dignity and self-determination,” and that Gaza also needed more humanitarian aid in the immediate term.
“As distant as this might seem right now: Israelis and Palestinians will only be able to live side by side in peace when the security of one means the security of the other,” Baerbock said. “That will only succeed if each recognizes the other’s suffering. It is our task to try everything we can on the route toward a two-state solution.”
Baerbock emphasized that Israel had the right to “defend itself against terror,” but also the duty to “protect civilians much better in its military action.”
She also addressed fears of a potential spillover, saying that people in neighboring Lebanon were worried “just one more spark could ignite the entire region.”
She said rocket fire from two additional directions besides Gaza, from Hezbollah in Lebanon and from the Houthis in Yemen, was further destabilizing the situation, urging both groups to halt hostilities.
https://p.dw.com/p/4awJn
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Skip next section 6 Palestinians, 1 Israeli killed in West Bank
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6 Palestinians, 1 Israeli killed in West Bank
Six Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike in the West Bank on Sunday, while an Israeli police officer was killed in a roadside bomb explosion, sources on both sides said.
Israel said its air strike targeted Palestinian militants who had attacked troops in the city of Jenin. The Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah, run by the Palestinian Authority, meanwhile said the strike hit “a gathering of civilians in Jenin.”
Four of those killed were brothers, family members said.
Israeli police also said one of its vehicles was hit by an explosive device during an operation in Jenin refugee camp. One police officer was killed, with three others wounded.
The military said a helicopter was sent to their aid, adding that an aircraft fired at a “terrorist squad that hurled explosives and endangered our forces.” It said that “a number of terrorists were killed.”
The Health Ministry reports that at least 327 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October 7. According to UN figures, 2023 was the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since it started recording casualties in 2005.
https://p.dw.com/p/4aw1J
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Skip next section Baerbock to visit Israel, talks to focus on hostages and Gaza humanitarian situation
8 hours ago8 hours ago
Baerbock to visit Israel, talks to focus on hostages and Gaza humanitarian situation
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock will visit Israel on Sunday to start a fresh tour of the Middle East.
In Israel, she is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Israel Katz and President Isaac Herzog.
She is expected to discuss efforts to free hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, as well as raise the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and a potential two-state solution to the conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Out of the 240 people taken hostage by Hamas, around 105 have been freed, including 14 German citizens. The Israeli military says that there are still 135 hostages in Gaza, among which there are multiple German citizens.
Hamas is classified as a terror organization not only by Israel, but also the US, Germany, the EU and others.
On Monday, Baerbock is scheduled to speak to Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki, who belongs to the Palestinian National Authority, which is based in the occupied West Bank.
Then, she will meet with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and visit Lebanon as well.
https://p.dw.com/p/4avxO
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Skip next section Blinken lands in Jordan in push to contain war
8 hours ago8 hours ago
Blinken lands in Jordan in push to contain war
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in the Jordanian capital Amman early Sunday following a visit to Turkey and Greece.
It’s the latest trip by Blinken to the Middle East and other countries surrounding the region since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7.
After Jordan, Blinken is set to visit Qatari capital Doha and the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi.
Washington aims to prevent the conflict from sparking a broader war in the region after the killing of Hamas senior figure Saleh Arouri in a strike in Beirut. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
“We have an intense focus on preventing this conflict from spreading,” Blinken said before leaving for Jordan.
“There is clearly a strong desire among the majority of people in the region for a future that is one of peace, of security, of de-escalation of conflicts, of integration of countries,” Blinken said.
sdi/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa)
