US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a warning on Sunday (Jan 7) that the war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip may “metastasize” and endanger regional stability.
“This is a moment of profound tension in the region. This is a conflict that could easily metastasize, causing even more insecurity and even more suffering,” Blinken told a news conference in Qatar on a regional tour aimed at de-escalating the conflict.
He further denounced the “tragedy” of civilian casualties and alerted that the upsurge in violence imperilled the wider region.
The top US diplomat said that Israel must make more efforts towards safeguarding civilians in Gaza further adding that Palestinians displaced by the ongoing war must “return home”.
“Palestinian civilians must be able to return home as soon as conditions allow. They cannot, they must not be pressed to leave Gaza,” Blinken said on the latest leg of his fourth Middle East tour since the war broke out.
Death of journalists in Gaza ‘unimaginable tragedy’
During the press briefing, Blinken said that the death of two journalists in a strike in Gaza was an “unimaginable tragedy”.
“This is an unimaginable tragedy. And that’s also been the case for… far too many innocent Palestinian men, women and children,” he said.
The health ministry in the Gaza Strip said on Sunday (Jan 7) that two journalists were killed in an Israeli air strike in the war-torn region.
According to the health ministry and medics, Mustafa Thuria, a video stringer for AFP news agency, and Hamza Wael Dahdouh, a journalist with Al Jazeera television network, were killed while they were travelling in a car.
Hamza’s father Wael al-Dahdouh is Al Jazeera’s bureau chief in the Gaza Strip and was also recently wounded in a strike, AFP reported. He was wounded after his wife and two children were killed by a separate Israeli strike in the initial weeks of the war which started on Oct 7 last year. Thuria, meanwhile, joined AFP in 2019.
In a statement, Hamas’ media office condemned the killings. “We condemn this heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupation army in a bid to intimidate and prevent media coverage,” it said.
(With inputs from agencies)
