By Janet Ekstract ISTANBUL- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet Turkish officials on Saturday to discuss the conflict in Gaza before he continues onto Israel. He will also be meeting officials in Egypt and Qatar. Blinken will hold talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday as well as other officials. Blinken is expected to focus heavily on making sure more humanitarian aid gets into Gaza.
Analysts have pointed out that the U.S. administration is extremely uneasy about the possibilty of the Gaza conflict widening. Prior to.Blimken’s visit, Israel’s cabinet drew up a plan for the day after Gaza. According to TRT World International, the Israeli government wants to see an international peacekeeping force to provide security at the Rafah Border Crossing while insisting on having total control.over the Gaza region and the West Bank.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration position is that a Palestinian-led government control.Gaza after the conflict ends and that the U.S., Egypt and Qatar will supervise the reconstruction of Gaza which Israel claims not to be interested in. The U.S. reiterated that Palestinians must have the right of governance after the conflict ends. Experts on the region have said Israel’s goal is to remove all Palestinians from Gaza. The latest reports indicate Israel”s plan to move Palestinians to The Democratic Republic of Northern Congo (DRNC). The problem with that plan is that DRNC is rife with conflict, Ebola outbreaks and is the most unstable country in Africa
Clearly, Blinken ‘s trip this weekend could be likened to a tight rope walk where one wrong move could end in disaster. He will need to tread carefully if he is to make any progress especially where Israel’s government is concerned. Amidst all the flurry of diplomacy is The International Criminal Court (ICC) hearing charges of genocide made by South Africa against Israel. Turkish President Erdogan had also sent reports and evidence of war crimes by Israel to the ICC as well.
Photo : AA
