Standoff At Egyptian Border Blocks Aid, Passage As Conditions In Gaza Worsen | Washington Post

Blinken is in Tel Aviv as Israel prepares offensive into Gaza

Oct. 16, 2023 -- TEL AVIV (Washington Post) -- Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Monday to pledge support for the country as it prepares a major military offensive in Gaza.

Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem; he heads to Tel Aviv next to meet with the war cabinet.

The visit to Israel, Blinken’s second in just a few days, comes after President Biden warned that a new Israeli occupation of Gaza would be a “big mistake” — one of his firmest efforts to signal restraint to Israel as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza reaches critical levels.

About 600,000 people have been displaced from the north of the enclave, aid agencies say. Food and water supplies in Gaza are dangerously low and hospitals there will run out of fuel within 24 hours, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Sunday.

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