Blinken says ‘every indication’ rocket was fired by Hezbollah, stands by Israel’s right to defend its citizens

Speaking at a press conference in Tokyo alongside the US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says there is “every indication” that the rocket that killed 12 children in the Golan was fired by Hezbollah.

“Every indication is that indeed the rocket was from Hezbollah,” he says. “We stand by Israel’s right to defend its citizens from terrorist attacks.”

Israel says that the rocket that hit Majdal Shams yesterday was fired by the Lebanese terrorist group, while Hezbollah denies that it was responsible.

Blinken and Austin met with Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko and Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru for a 2+2 dialogue before speaking to reporters.

The secretary stresses that a ceasefire in Gaza is the best way to end the fighting in the north.

“One of the reasons that we’re continuing to work so hard for a ceasefire in Gaza is not just for Gaza,” he continues, “but also so that we can [advance] an opportunity to bring calm, lasting calm, across the blue line between Israel and Lebanon. We’re determined to bring the Gaza conflict to a close. It’s gone on for far too long. It’s cost far too many lives.”

“It’s so important that we help defuse that conflict,” says Blinken, “not only prevent it from escalating, prevent it from spreading, but to defuse it because you so many people in both countries, in both Israel and Lebanon, who’ve been displaced from their homes.”

Blinken says that the Biden administration is “in conversations” with Israel, emphasizing again Israel’s right to defend its citizens and America’s “determination “to make sure they are able to do that” without the conflict spreading.

“The best way to do that in a sustained way is to get that ceasefire in Gaza that we’re working so hard on virtually every minute of the day,” Blinken concludes.