US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced an additional $404 million in new aid to Palestinians, while attending the “Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza” Conference in Jordan on Tuesday.
This is in addition to “the more than $1.8 billion in development, economic, and humanitarian aid that the United States has provided since 2021”, as “the largest single country provider of assistance for Palestinians,” Blinken noted.
In this speech, Blinken said that the only thing that stands in the way of the hostage release and ceasefire deal happening is Hamas.
He then urged the audience of Arab leaders to pressure Hamas to agree to the proposed deal.
In his speech, Blinken was also critical of Israel, saying that Israel has taken some steps to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, but has not done enough and has not done enough to reduce the number of civilian deaths in Gaza.
Blinken emphasized that Israel is fighting this war against “an enemy that conducts operations from schools, from hospitals, from camps of displaced families, an enemy that cynically hides behind or underneath the people it purports to represent.”
At the conference, Blinken began his speech by thanking Jordanian King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for convening it and for their “tireless efforts to help end this conflict and to help the many children, women, and men who are so desperately in need.”
Gaza's crisis
He then reiterated the “crisis in Gaza.” “More than a million people have been displaced from Rafah alone, in the last month alone – many of whom had already been uprooted multiple times.”
He continued, “Ninety-five percent of people there cannot access clean drinking water. Hunger is everywhere. Virtually everyone in Gaza depends on aid to survive.”
He then also highlighted Gaza’s destroyed sanitation system and that less than a dozen of Gaza’s 40 hospitals remain open.
He also added that over 270 humanitarian workers have been killed.
“One of those humanitarians was Jamal abu Kwaik, a long time UNRWA staffer in Gaza who for years was the United States’ main local contact – and for many, a friend. He was killed last month after evacuating Rafah. He was looking for shelter for his family. He’s survived by his wife and his four children,” Blinken recounted.
Blinken then declared that the most effective way to address this crisis is an “immediate” and “enduring” ceasefire.
“Eleven days ago, President Biden set out a comprehensive proposal to do precisely that,” Blinken pointed out.
“In its first six weeks, the proposal would provide for a full ceasefire, the pull-back the Israeli forces from all the populated areas of Gaza, the release of a number of hostages – including women, the elderly, and wounded, a dramatic surge in aid deliveries, the return of civilians to their homes or neighborhoods in all parts of Gaza. And it would also initiate negotiations toward a permanent ceasefire,” he informed his audience.
The second phase of the deal would bring the release of all remaining living hostages and the complete withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza, Blinken continued. This phase would also bring about the implementation of a permanent cessation of hostilities.
He then added that the final phase would bring a massive reconstruction effort in Gaza.
Blinken told the audience that when he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday in Israel, he reaffirmed his “support” and “commitment” to the deal.
Blinken also highlighted the UN Security Council’s support of the proposed deal.
At the end of his speech, he brought up examples of children who have become orphans, and are suffering from severe health issues.
“Ten-year-old Abed lost his parents, his brother, and other family members. They were killed in an airstrike that was targeting terrorists. He said, ‘When my mom and dad were alive, I used to sleep. I can’t sleep anymore.’”
Blinken shared that the acronym WCNSF (wounded child, no surviving family members) has become increasingly common in Gaza.
He recalled the story of six-year-old Fadi who has cystic fibrosis. “When the conflict began, his parents could no longer get the food and medicine that he needed to remain healthy. Before he was evacuated to the United States from Gaza just last month, he was so severely malnourished that his legs could no longer support the weight of his body,” Blinken recounted.
He also quoted Dunya, 11, who lost her parents, and her two siblings when their home was struck in Khan Yunis. “I lost my leg. I lost my family, but I still have dreams. I want to get a prosthetic leg. I want to travel. I want to become a doctor. I want for this war to end, and our children to live in peace,” Blinken quoted her saying.
Using these examples, he called on the Arab states in attendance to increase their volume of aid to Gaza.
“Let’s do more than just call for a better future for Palestinians and Israelis. Let’s help build that path to the future, do it together,” Blinken concluded.