Worthy Christian News > Israel-Palestinian Conflict > Blinken Tells Israel That War Should Lead To Two-State Solution

Blinken Tells Israel That War Should Lead To Two-State Solution

By Worthy News’ George Whitten and Stefan J. Bos

JERUSALEM/GAZA (Worthy News) – The United States, long Israel’s closest ally, made clear Friday that it expects the Israel-Hamas war to lead to a two-state solution.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a visit to Israel, told Israeli leaders that the war could not only be about defeating Hamas, viewed as a terrorist organization by many nations.

He suggested that the battle for Israel’s existence following the Hamas killings of 1,400 men, women, and children is also about “a brighter future” with a state of Palestine and Israel being peaceful neighbors.

“This is not just about dealing with Hamas in terms of defeating it physically. It is about making sure that it can’t repeat what it did on October 7,” he acknowledged.

However, the Israel-Hamas war “is also about defeating an idea – a perverted idea… that we have to combat with a better idea… with a better vision for what that future can be and demonstrating that we’re committed to achieving [it], Blinken argued.

He said the two-state vision could “give people something to hope for” and added “there is a broad and strong coalition throughout the region” supports it.

He also urged Israel on Friday to introduce humanitarian “pauses” in fighting as its army battled Hamas deep in Gaza.

However, Israel had rejected ceasefire calls, saying it reacted to the worst atrocities against Jews since the Holocaust, also known as the Shoah.

It has pledged to destroy Hamas following the October 7 massacres in Israel and kidnappings of more than 200 people from Israel.

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says more than 9,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in the Strip since October 7. However, those figures have been complex to verify independently.