U.S. Secretary of State Is Antony Blinken Touring The Middle East

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is visiting the Middle East to try to solidify the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. During the three day tour he will hold meetings in Israel, the west bank, Egypt and Jordan. The first stop was a meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu and he ensured the Prime Minister that the United States would “work to ensure that Hamas does not benefit” from the aid. The tour comes at the end of the violence between Israel and Hamas. During the 11 day conflict, at least 248 Palestinians which included 66 children were killed by Israeli strikes and at least 12 people in Israel including two children were killed by Palestinian militant fire from Gaza.

Blinken said the losses on both sides of the conflict were ‘profound’ and added “casualties are often reduced to numbers. But behind every number is a human being — a daughter, a son, a father, a mother, a grandparent, a best friend. And as the Talmud teaches, to lose a life is to lose the whole world, whether that life is Palestinian or Israeli.” Blinken and Netanyahu discussed Israel’s security needs and Natanyahu urged the U.S. not to return to the Iran Nuclear Deal saying that the deal would allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons and adding that Israel reserves the right to defend itself.