Blinken spoke with family of Shireen Abu Akleh, says US national security adviser

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke recently on the phone with the family of slain Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan tells reporters in a press gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Israel.

Blinken invited the family to come to Washington to meet directly with administration officials in order to further discuss her killing, Sullivan says.

The US put out a statement earlier this month that said Israel did not intentionally kill Abu Akleh, even though it was likely responsible. Sullivan says the administration still seeks accountability in the Al Jazeera reporter’s death.

Sullivan also tells reporters aboard the flight that the Biden administration is “heartened” by the recent phone call between Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

The call was the first in years between Israeli and Palestinian leaders after Lapid’s predecessor, Naftali Bennett, refused to engage with the PA president and former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu did the same for much of his tenure.

Sullivan expresses hope that the recent call will lead to more cooperation between the sides on a path toward a two-state solution. He tells reporters that while Biden is hopeful for Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts, “he won’t be making formal proposals for the launch of some sort of peace initiative.”

Asked about the potential of reopening the Jerusalem consulate that served Palestinians, Sullivan says that it is the US position “that we would like a consulate in East Jerusalem, obviously that requires engagement with the Israeli government, that requires engagement with the Palestinian leadership as well, and we will continue that engagement on this trip.”