The US State Department confirms the call that took place yesterday between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and new Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar.
The US readout says that Blinken raised the need to expand humanitarian aid into Gaza after the US announced earlier this week that Israel made enough progress on this issue to remain in compliance with US law.
Last month, the US gave Israel 30 days to take a series of steps to alleviate the Gaza humanitarian crisis in order to avoid violating US law, which bars the US from transferring offensive weapons to countries that block aid from civilians.
While Israel failed to meet several of the demands listed in the latter, the US appeared to give Jerusalem a pass after the administration saw its leverage dissipate due to Donald Trump’s election victory, given that the president-elect would have surely reversed any move to withhold weapons from Israel upon returning to the White House.
During yesterday’s call, the pair also discussed efforts to secure ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this