The official spokesman for the US State Department, Matthew Miller, stated that the administration of US President Joe Biden is working seriously and diligently to end the suffering of the Palestinians, stop the war, and pave the way for achieving the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Miller said in response to a question from Al-Quds correspondent in Washington, during his press conference at the US State Department, about the fifty-seventh anniversary of the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, “I will show you some of the things that happen daily. They blew up two houses in Jalboun. There A United Nations statement says that killing people in the West Bank is unacceptable, and the question is how long must the Palestinians endure another 57 years of occupation? Isn’t it time for the United States of America to fulfill its many obligations, many times over the decades, of necessity? Ending this occupation? Or maybe you don't feel that this occupation should end?"

Miller responded: “The work we have been doing is creating an independent Palestinian state.”

Miller added: “To respond to the legitimate political aspirations of the Palestinian people. One of the things you heard President Biden talking about last Friday, when he proposed a ceasefire, is that we want to resolve the immediate crisis in Gaza. We want to see an end to the death and destruction there. But we believe Also, accepting that proposal could lead us to long-term peace, long-term stability, and of course self-determination for the Palestinian people.”

When the “Al-Quds” correspondent commented that what President Biden did, or what previous presidents did with regard to exercising or taking advantage of the weight and prestige of the United States with Israel to achieve good and stop settlements, to end the killing, then you have not done anything in many decades, Miller said: “If "You wanted to talk about how we use the influence and prestige of the United States, and you've seen that over the last few days... By working with Egypt and Qatar to negotiate a proposal that Israel has put on the table to achieve an immediate ceasefire, we will work to try to turn it into a long-term, lasting peace." .

He added, "I would like to point out, as I did yesterday when I asked similar questions, and as I did the day before when I asked similar questions, that the obstacle to the launch of this proposal on the ground now is not Israel, not the United States, and not any country in the region, but rather Hamas." “I would also like to point out the fact – the work we have done with the government of Saudi Arabia and with our other Arab partners to try to find a long-term normalization of relations with Israel, and one of the things that will be included in that normalization is a path to an independent Palestinian state.”

In his response to the “Al-Quds” correspondent’s follow-up, he said that what we see is the continuation of this fierce war that has been ongoing for eight months against Gaza, which is just a small period of the past 57 years. More than 40,000 Palestinians have already been killed, perhaps more, many of them women and children. All of Gaza may have been destroyed, or most of it may have been destroyed. The same thing is repeated every day in the West Bank, where settler violence seems to disappear from the American radar screen. Miller replied: “If you want to talk about how we use the influence and prestige of the United States, you have seen that over the past few days,” repeating, “We are working on Trying to turn it into a permanent, long-term peace; trying to find a long-term normalization of relations with Israel, and one of the things that normalization will include is a path to an independent Palestinian state.”

Miller insisted: “The United States has been actively engaged in this issue, and it has not only been speaking to it from podiums, and it has not limited itself to giving speeches on this issue, but it has actively engaged with its partners in the region in trying to establish an independent Palestinian state; and trying to stop all The massacres that occurred in the past eight months, and all the deaths that occurred in the past eight months, and emerging from that with real and tangible progress to respond to the legitimate hopes and aspirations of the Palestinians.”

When the Al-Quds correspondent followed up, what we see is that the President of the United States (yesterday, Tuesday 6/4/2024) - signed an agreement with Israel to grant it an additional wing of F-35 aircraft that were used only in Gaza and not anywhere else, and granted it more than 15 Billion dollars in weapons and so on. For this war to continue. We've seen the president basically say that Mr. Netanyahu wants this war to continue for political reasons, and then he backs off and so on. I don't think these signals would in any way show a red eye or - as we say in Arabic - or show the stick, so to speak, to the Israeli government for ending its atrocities in Gaza. “There are a few things,” Miller said. “First of all, when it comes to... "It is for Israel's long-term security, and when I referred to these negotiations regarding the provision of F-35 aircraft, this is a commitment to Israel's long-term security."

Miller added, “These aircraft will be delivered four years from now in 2028. We are committed to maintaining Israel’s qualitative military edge in the region. This is something we are required to do by law, and it is something we support and will continue to do. However, we also seek To end the conflict in Gaza.

As you said, despite the premise of your question, Israel is not the obstacle to a ceasefire at the moment. It is not Israel that constitutes a barrier to the return of the hostages, the arrival of 600 trucks of humanitarian aid daily, and the Palestinians being able to return, and return safely, to their neighborhoods, and ultimately reach the reconstruction of Gaza. It's Hamas. All of this is on the table in the proposal that is sitting with Hamas, as it has been sitting with Hamas for six days. We wait for them - and wait for them - and wait for their answer