'International players may assist in interim period', Blinken backs Palestinian Authority's return to Gaza
Antony Blinken while endorsing the Islamist militant movement that has ruled the impoverished territory since 2007. Addressing a Senate hearing, Blinken said, “At some point, what would make the most sense would be for an effective and revitalized Palestinian Authority to have governance and ultimately security responsibility for Gaza." "Whether you can get there in one step is a big question that we have to look at.
And if you can't, then there are other temporary arrangements that may involve a number of other countries in the region," he said as quoted by AFP. Blinken said it may involve international agencies that would help provide for both security and governance.
“There cannot be a reversion of the status quo with Hamas running Gaza." "We also can't have -- and the Israelis start with this proposition themselves -- Israel running or controlling Gaza," he added. While Blinken backed Israeli goals against Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long sought to sideline the Palestinian Authority and its president Mahmud Abbas which exercises limited autonomy in parts of the occupied West Bank.
According to the Ramallah-based health ministry, Blinken on a recent trip to the Middle East met twice with Abbas and voiced appreciation for efforts in the West Bank to preserve calm, which has since deteriorated, with at least 122 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or settlers since October 7. The military said two members of the Israeli forces have been killed in the West Bank over the same period, AFP reported.
He again repeated that the United States backed the creation of a Palestinian state, a goal bitterly opposed by members of PM Netanyahu's hard-right government. Israel launched its assault in response to an
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