WASHINGTON, Jan 14 (KUNA) -- Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States sought to end the war in Gaza Strip "in a way that will lay the foundation for enduring peace, as well as to advance the legitimate aspirations of Israelis for lasting security and Palestinians for an independent, viable state of their own." In his final speech as US top diplomat to the Atlantic Council on Tuesday, Blinken said that in the wake of Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, US President Joe "Biden made clear the United States unwavering commitment to help Israel defend itself and prevent another -- a broader regional conflict--." "The ongoing humanitarian crisis of Gaza has inflicted immeasurable suffering on Palestinian civilians, children, women, men, trapped in a conflict they did not start and are powerless to stop. 10s of 1000s of people killed in Gaza. "Nearly the entire population, nearly the entire population is enduring hunger, nearly the entire population since 200 this place, many multiple times, most have no home to go to. There's so many homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. "Gaza is one of the most dangerous places in the world, to be a child, to be a civilian, to be a journalist, and as always happens in conflicts, the more people suffer, the less they feel empathy for the suffering of those on the other side throughout the Arab and Muslim worlds, large majorities believe that October 7 didn't happen, or if it did, that it was a legitimate attack on Israel's military. "In Israel, there is almost no reporting on the conditions of Gaza and what people there endure every day. This dehumanization is one of the greatest tragedies with the conflict," Blinen noted. "We sought to end the war in Gaza --. One month into the conference at a meeting of key seven foreign ministers in Tokyo, I outlined principles that the United States was essential to achieving these goals. "The principles included the Gaza endeavor, again ruled by Hamas, or used as a platform for terrorism or other violent attacks. "New Palestinian led governance with Gaza united with the West Bank, under the Palestinian Authority, no Israeli military occupation of Gaza, for reduction of Gaza's territory, no attempt after the continent to be siege or block and no forcible displacement of Gaza population.
"These principles also called for establishing a sustained mechanism for Gaza recovering reconstruction, and for creating a pathway toward Israelis and Palestinians living side by side in states of their own with equal measures of security, freedom, opportunity and dignity.
"Now we and our partners recognize that we wouldn't be able to achieve these goals overnight.
"The first step we have long delete is to achieve an initial ceasefire six weeks during which Israel and Hamas stop firing, Israeli forces pull back, hostages start to come home.
"Palestinian prisoners are released. Humanitarian Assistance surges into Gaza.
"It will also create space for finalizing a day after plan to allow the full withdrawal of Israeli forces to make the ceasefire permanent and to bring the remaining hostages home once we assess that Israel had achieved its main objective in Gaza, ensuring that Hamas was incapable of carrying out another October 7, President Biden publicly set out this detailed ceasefire plan. Support for the proposal. "The UN Security Council swiftly adopted a resolution supported with 14 members voting for it, not a single member voting against it," he said, noting that "the Arab League, countries of the region and beyond, all affirmed their support." "Hamas holdout, but now thoroughly isolated, finally accepted President Biden's premier in the time since we've worked relentlessly with Qatar and Egypt to negotiate the details of the agreement and its implementation. "Now, at different moments, different parties have made it hard to finalize an agreement, or events have delayed or derailed its completion for the past several months, Hamas has played a spoiler, but over the past several weeks, our intensive efforts have brought us to the brink of full and final agreement. "On Sunday, the United States, Qatar and Egypt put forward a final proposal. The ball is now in Hamas' court. Hamas accepts. "The deal is ready to be concluded and implemented. I believe we will get a ceasefire," he affirmed. "And whether we get there in the remaining days of our administration, or after January 20, I believe the deal will follow closely the terms of the agreement that President Biden put forward last May and our administration rallied the world behind now, from the outset, we also recognize that we couldn't afford to wait until a ceasefire a plan for what would follow it. "For many months, we've been working to develop a detailed post conflict plan that would allow Israel to fully withdraw from Gaza, prevent Hamas from filling back in, and provide for Gaza's governance, security and reconstruction, drawing on the principles that I originally set out in Tokyo. (more) rsr.gb