The US Secretary of State has long been planning a trip to Israel to promote the two-state solution. However, after two Palestinian attacks in Jerusalem, the situation had turned into a powder keg when Blinken arrived.
At the start of a visit to Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken appealed to Israelis and Palestinians to work towards defusing the conflict following the recent escalation of violence. Blinken will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem later in the day and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Tuesday for talks. The violence that has escalated in recent days has heightened the urgency of Blinken’s long-planned trip.
Upon arrival at Tel Aviv airport, Blinken condemned those who were celebrating the violence in Jerusalem and “all other acts of terrorism that have claimed innocent lives.” “It is everyone’s responsibility to take action to calm tensions rather than fuel them,” said the US chief diplomat. This is the only way to stop the growing wave of violence “which has already claimed too many lives – too many Israelis and too many Palestinians.”
Blinken had previously called on “all parties” to “calm the situation and de-escalate tensions” during a visit to Egypt. Egypt is an important mediator in the Middle East conflict. Blinken met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri before traveling to Israel.
On Friday, an armed Palestinian killed seven people in front of a synagogue in East Jerusalem. Another attack followed on Saturday, in which a 13-year-old Palestinian seriously injured two Israelis in the eastern part of the city. Earlier on Thursday, ten Palestinians were killed by Israeli soldiers in a raid on a refugee camp in the West Bank.
This Monday, Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank killed a Palestinian driver, officials from both sides said. According to the Israeli army, the car had previously hit a soldier. The 26-year-old died of “a gunshot wound to the head” inflicted by occupying soldiers “this morning in Hebron,” the Palestinian Ministry of Health said. That brings the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem this month – including militants, civilians and several children – to 35.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also called for a de-escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In a phone call to Netanyahu, Macron warned of a “spiral of violence,” as the Élysée Palace announced on Sunday. Macron therefore condemned the “disgusting attack” in front of the synagogue in East Jerusalem and promised Israel the “unlimited solidarity of France in the fight against terrorism”. Lavrov appealed to Israelis and Palestinians to show “maximum responsibility” and prevent the situation from deteriorating again.
Blinken’s visit to the Middle East is also an expression of the efforts of President Joe Biden’s government to quickly ease relations with Netanyahu, who returned to power in December after a year and a half. During the tenure of former US President Barack Obama, for whom Biden had served as Vice President, relations with Netanyahu had been strained.
During his visit, Blinken is expected to reaffirm US support for the two-state solution, and with it a Palestinian state of its own. However, it is considered unlikely that this model will be implemented under the new Netanyahu government – Israel’s most right-wing government to date.
