Blinken urges ‘humanitarian pauses’ to help civilians, but must avoid Hamas benefiting

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirms that he spoke about Washington’s desire to see humanitarian pauses in the Gaza fighting.

He acknowledges that legitimate questions were raised in his talks with Israeli officials about how to best use such pauses to allow in more aid, and help secure the release of the hostages, while preventing Hamas from using the temporary cessations to its advantage.

Blinken says bluntly: “We need to be doing more to protect Palestinian civilians.”

He reiterates that Israel has a right to defend itself, but “how it does so matters.”

He argues that protecting Palestinians is the “right thing to do” and that failing to do so “plays into the hands of Hamas.”

It also leads to filling potential partners for peace with anger and alienating Israel’s potential partners in the region as well. “There will be no partners for peace if they are consumed by [concerns for] humanitarian catastrophe [among Gazans] and alienated by any presumed indifference to their plight.”

Blinken says that just like he has been pained to watch how the carnage has impacted Israeli children, he’s felt no different watching Palestinian girls and boys being pulled from the rubble of buildings bombed by Israel.

“When I see them, when I look into their eyes from the TV screens, I see my own children,” Blinken says. “How can I not?”

The secretary clarifies that Hamas doesn’t care about Palestinians and “cynically and monstrously uses them as human shields,” placing its infrastructure and fighters in residential buildings, schools, mosques hospitals. But “civilians should not suffer the consequences for its inhumanity and brutality.”

Blinken says he discussed with Israel steps to take to fight under these conditions — “advice only best of friends can offer.”

He stresses the need to increase humanitarian aid flow to Gaza civilians — 100 trucks a day is not enough, he says — and further steps to help get more foreign nationals out.

He says he spoke to Israeli leaders about tangible steps for “food, water, medicine, fuel and other urgent needs” to be met, with “mechanisms” to enable fuel to reach Gaza hospitals.

Blinken says Israel raised concerns “that we share” about Hamas hoarding and siphoning of fuel in northern Gaza, denying fuel to hospitals.

He adds that the US is also relentlessly focused on securing the release of hostages, including Americans.

He urges “humanitarian pauses” that he says can enable increased security for Gaza civilians and more effective assistance. He says he discussed today with Israeli leaders “how, when and where” these pauses could occur. “This would take time” to prepare and coordinate, he says, and there are “legitimate questions” about how to connect such pauses to the release of hostages and how to avoid Hamas abusing any such pauses.