US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel, the West Bank, and the United Arab Emirates later this week, a senior State Department official said on Monday, to press for more humanitarian aid into Gaza and help secure the release of all hostages kidnapped by Hamas.
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"The Secretary will stress the need to sustain the increased flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, secure the release of all hostages, and improve protections for civilians in Gaza," a senior State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said.
Blinken will also discuss with partners in the region Washington's principles for the future of Gaza and the need for an independent Palestinian state, the official said. He will also attend the UN COP28 climate summit in Dubai, the official added.
A truce between Israel and Hamas in Gaza that was on the verge of expiring was extended by two days, mediator Qatar said on Monday, raising the prospect the Palestinian group will free hostages beyond the 69 released since Friday.
Video: The 11 hostages being handed over to Israel, November 27, 2023
The truce will prolong a pause in the seven-week war between Israel and the Islamist Palestinian group, which triggered the latest conflict with an Oct. 7 incursion into southern Israel in which it murdered about 1,200 people and took roughly 240 hostages.
Each day since the four-day truce began on Friday, Hamas has released some of the hostages while Israel has freed some of the Palestinians it holds.
Israel previously said it would extend the truce by one day for every 10 more hostages released, providing some respite to Palestinians in the Mediterranean seaside strip from the war, which has killed thousands and laid waste to the enclave.
"An agreement has been reached to extend the humanitarian pause for an additional two days in the Gaza Strip," a Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said in a post on social media platform X. Hamas also said it had agreed to a two-day extension.
There was no immediate comment from Israel, but a White House official confirmed an agreement had been reached.
US President Joe Biden thanked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as Qatar and Egypt – who have facilitated indirect talks between the two sides – for a pact that would free more hostages and allow more aid into Gaza.
On Monday, the Israeli military said 11 Israeli hostages – the latest to be freed under the terms of the original truce that was due to end on Monday – had arrived in Israel.
Qatar said the newly released hostages, all dual citizens, included three with French nationality, two with German nationality, and six Argentine citizens.
Hamas said earlier it had received a list of 33 Palestinians to be released from Israeli jails in return. It said these included three female prisoners and 30 minors.
With the latest releases, Hamas has freed a total of 69 people since Friday, including both Israelis and non–Israelis.
Under the terms of the existing four–day truce agreement, Hamas was due to release in total of 50 Israeli women and children held hostage in Gaza. There was no limit in the deal on the number of foreigners it could release.
Prior to the latest releases, an Israeli spokesperson said the total number of hostages still held in Gaza on Monday was 184, including 14 foreigners and 80 Israelis with dual nationality.
US national security spokesperson John Kirby said on CNN the White House did not believe any Americans would be among the latest group to be freed from Gaza, where Washington says seven to nine US citizens are being held.
A senior US official said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken would visit Israel, the West Bank, and the United Arab Emirates this week to discuss sustaining aid flows to Gaza and freeing all hostages as well as US principles for the future of Gaza and the need for an independent Palestinian state.
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