US stresses ‘urgency of reaching a ceasefire’ between Israel, Islamic Jihad

By AFP and ToI Staff 13 May 2023, 5:47 am

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File: (Left to right) Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Council chairman Tzachi Hanegbi at the State Department in Washington on March 7, 2023. (Antony Blinken/Twitter)

The United States urges steps be “taken to ensure that violence is reduced” as a round of violence between Israel and a Gaza terror group enters its fifth day.

In a call with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman stressed “the urgency of reaching a ceasefire agreement in order to prevent any further loss of civilian life,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller says in a press announcement.

During the call, Sherman reiterated the US’ “enduring commitment to Israel’s security” and conveyed her condolences for the Israeli citizen killed in yesterday’s rocket attacks,” says Miller.

She also “strongly condemned the indiscriminate launch of rockets into Israel from Gaza-based terrorist groups, which endangers the welfare of both Israelis and Palestinians,” and emphasized that “Israelis and Palestinians equally deserve to live safely and securely,” expressing “deep regret for Palestinian and Israeli civilian casualties.”