By Humeyra Pamuk
WASHNGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a senior Israeli official on Monday that steps Israel has taken to improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza must lead to real improvements on the ground, the State Department said Business Tuesday.
Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wrote to their Israeli counterparts on October 13 a checklist of specific steps to address the deteriorating situation in the Palestinian enclave amid a renewed Israeli offensive.
Washington gave Israel 30 days to comply, saying results on the ground would determine whether or not enough had been done. Washington has not yet said whether it believes Israel has complied.
During a meeting on Monday, Strategic Affairs Secretary Ron Dermer briefed Blinken on the policy decisions made by the Israeli government to meet the requirements, along with operational changes by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
“The minister stressed the importance of ensuring that these changes lead to a real improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, including by providing additional assistance to civilians across Gaza,” said Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement.
COGAT, the Israeli military agency that deals with Palestinian civilian affairs, published on Sunday a list of Israel's humanitarian efforts over the past six months, “highlighting recent initiatives and outlining plans to maintain support for Gaza as winter approaches.”
International aid groups said on Tuesday that Israel had not only failed to meet US demands but had even taken steps that “dramatically worsened” the situation on the ground.
For more than a month, Israeli forces have pushed deeper into northern Gaza, surrounding hospitals and shelters and expelling new waves of people in an operation they say is aimed at preventing Hamas fighters from regrouping.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, Kanishka Singh and Ismail Shakil; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
