The “Group of Seven” demands “humanitarian truces” and Blinken rejects the return of the occupation and the displacement of the Palestinians

The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven major industrialized countries called for “humanitarian truces” that would allow the introduction of humanitarian aid into Gaza, support the protection of Palestinian civilians, and the release of hostages held by “Hamas,” while US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken presented the clearest visions of President Joe Biden’s administration for what is called “today.” Next» in the Strip after the end of the war, warning the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against seeking to reoccupy Gaza, in the latest indication of increasing pressure from the United States and Western countries on Israel to stop the attack that has so far led to the death of more than ten thousand people.

About two weeks after the start of the Israeli ground invasion of Gaza in response to the Hamas attack on October 7, voices rose across the United Nations and countries around the world to allow the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid to about 2.4 million Palestinians living under the stifling siege in Gaza.

The group includes the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan. The latter currently holds the rotating presidency of this bloc, which held two-day meetings in Tokyo at the level of foreign ministers. The final statement fell short of calling for a comprehensive ceasefire, for fear that this would risk the Gaza Strip’s authority remaining under the control of “Hamas,” according to Secretary Blinken’s statements.

Truces and corridors

The unified statement of the foreign ministers stated: “We support humanitarian truces and corridors to facilitate urgently needed assistance, the movement of civilians and the release of hostages,” stressing “the importance of protecting civilians and complying with international law, especially international humanitarian law.”

As the ministers reiterated their condemnation of the Hamas attack, which the Israeli authorities announced led to the death of about 1,400 people, they said that “there is an urgent need for more humanitarian assistance to civilians” in Gaza, where the invasion, air strikes and bombings led to the death of more than ten thousand. One person, and more than 26 thousand were injured, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.

Despite the great support from the administration of President Joe Biden for what it calls “Israel’s right to defend itself” and its goal of eliminating “Hamas,” it has steadily raised its calls for a temporary halt to the fighting for humanitarian reasons in order to deliver aid to Gaza. During an entire month of the war, the United Nations was able to bring about 520 aid trucks into Gaza, noting that this number of trucks was sent daily to the besieged Strip before the start of this war.

Settler violence

The statement by the G7 ministers expressed their concern about “the escalation of extremist settler violence against Palestinians” in the West Bank, stressing that they will work together to “deprive (Hamas) of the ability to raise funds and use them to commit atrocities,” including by imposing new sanctions. 

The statement also called for a return to the “two-state solution” as “the only way to achieve a just, lasting and secure peace” in the Middle East. It urged Iran to “refrain from providing support to the Hamas movement, and from taking further measures that destabilize the Middle East, including support for the Lebanese Hezbollah and other non-governmental entities,” calling on Tehran to “use its influence with those groups to calm tensions.” Regional.

Unity of position

The statement appears to align more closely than previous G7 statements with the approach taken by Japan since the beginning of the war. While most of its G7 peers have offered full support for Israel, Japan has distinguished itself by issuing more moderate public statements calling on “all parties” to “exercise maximum restraint” in the conflict, and expressing concern about the number of casualties in both Israel and Gaza.

During the meetings in Tokyo, Blinken warned that Israel should not reoccupy Gaza, in a direct response to Netanyahu’s statements that Israel could bear responsibility for Gaza’s security “for an indefinite period as he said: “We all want to end this conflict as soon as possible, while at the same time reducing civilian suffering to a minimum.” But, as I discussed with my G7 colleagues, those demanding an immediate ceasefire have an obligation to explain how a ceasefire would work, and to address the unacceptable outcome that would likely result in Hamas remaining in power with more than 200 hostages. “With the declared ability and intention to repeat what happened on October 7 over and over again.”

Transitional period

Blinken added, “We are very clear about not reoccupying, just as we are very clear about not displacing the Palestinian population in the Israeli attack on Gaza.” He added that, on the other hand, “Hamas cannot continue to administer Gaza,” explaining that “the truth now is that there may be a need for some transitional period at the end of the conflict, but it is necessary for the Palestinian people to be central to governance in Gaza and the West Bank.” . He pointed out that Israeli leaders told him “that they do not intend to reoccupy Gaza,” without naming any of these officials.

This response from the chief American diplomat was the latest indication of potential tension between the Israeli government and its largest military supporter, the United States.

American officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to sensitive internal discussions, said that Netanyahu’s statements “raised a warning to the Biden administration, whose position is that Israel needs to avoid any reference to an open occupation of Gaza.” US officials appear to be increasingly concerned about Israel's plans for post-conflict Gaza. Blinken said that the administration “also wants to ensure other forms of protection for the residents of Gaza,” explaining that the basic elements for ending the conflict must include “no forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, neither now nor after the war,” in addition to that “the territory of Gaza should not be reduced.” .