Israel-Gaza War: Antony Blinken, James Cleverly discuss humanitarian access to Gaza

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his UK counterpart, James Cleverly, had a phone conversation where they discussed the Israel-Hamas conflict, the need for humanitarian access to Gaza for Palestinian civilians, and the immediate release of hostages.

According to an official statement, both leaders reiterated Israel’s right to self-defence and noted ways to collaborate with regional partners to pause the conflict’s escalation and secure the hostages’ release.

In a statement, US Department of State Matthew Miller stated, “Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke yesterday with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly. Secretary Blinken and Foreign Secretary Cleverly affirmed Israel’s right to self-defense, discussed their engagement with regional partners to prevent the spread of the conflict and secure the release of hostages. They reiterated the need to ensure sustained delivery of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza.”

In the meantime, James Cleverly also engaged in discussions with his Israeli counterpart, Eli Cohen, and reaffirmed the UK’s backing of Israel’s right to self-defence, in accordance with international humanitarian law.

Cleverly posted on X, “Today @JamesCleverly spoke to @elicoh1 and reiterated our support for Israel’s self-defence in line with international humanitarian law. The Foreign Secretary also spoke to @SecBlinken to help prevent regional escalation and called for humanitarian pauses to allow lifesaving aid to reach civilians.”

The US and UK have strongly denounced Hamas’s attack on Israel and have expressed their support for Israel’s right to self-defence in response to the actions taken by Hamas on October 7.

Earlier this month, both US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visited Israel to demonstrate their solidarity with Tel Aviv during its ongoing conflict with Hamas.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that their ground forces are continuing operations in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. During these operations, they have targeted Hamas militants and destroyed facilities belonging to the group. The IDF has stated that their troops have killed Hamas gunmen who engaged in a firefight with ground forces in Gaza.

The IDF spokesperson said Hamas was using the people of Gaza as human shields amid the ongoing offensive. “Hamas operated inside and under civilian buildings, precisely because they know the IDF distinguishes between terrorists and civilians,” he said.

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that multiple terrorists were eliminated as forces continue to expand ground operations in northern Gaza.

“As we continue to expand our ground operations in northern Gaza: IAF aircraft, guided by IDF troops, struck Hamas structures. Anti-tank missile launch posts & observation posts were struck. Multiple terrorists were eliminated,” IDF posted on X.

According to the Israel Air Force, a recent airstrike was conducted on a terrorist cell operating in the Mount Dov region. This cell had carried out missions towards Israeli territory on Sunday.

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