State Department says Dermer updated Blinken on efforts to improve Gaza’s humanitarian situation

During their meeting Monday in Washington, the State Department says that Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer updated US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the steps Israel has taken to address the Gaza humanitarian crisis, ahead of tomorrow’s deadline for Jerusalem to do so at the risk of facing a partial arms embargo.

A US readout on the meeting — issued before a report was published saying that Washington has decided against withholding the weapons in question — says Dermer updated the operational changes made by Israeli security forces along with the decisions made by the political echelon to address the demands laid out by the US in an October 13 letter that gave Israel 30 days to significantly improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Failure to do so could place Israel out of compliance with US law that bars the transfer of weapons to countries that block the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in conflict zones.

Blinken “emphasized the importance of ensuring those changes lead to an actual improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, including through the delivery of additional assistance to civilians throughout Gaza,” the readout says. He also reiterates “the importance that Israel take every possible step to minimize civilian harm” amid mounting reports of mass civilian casualties in a series of recent Israeli strikes throughout Gaza.

In one such strike last month in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya, the IDF said it sought to target a Hamas operative but accidentally took down the entire building, reportedly killing dozens of Palestinians, many of them women and children.

Blinken also reiterates the need for a hostage deal to end the war in Gaza and asserts that planning for the post-war management of Gaza is “the only way to ensure lasting peace and stability for both Israelis and Palestinians,” per the US readout.

The pair also discuss efforts to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon so that Israelis and Lebanese civilians living near the Blue Line can return to their homes, the State Department says.