Blinken: US Drafted UNSC Resolution Calling for ‘Immediate Ceasefire’ in Gaza

The US has circulated a UN Security Council resolution draft calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Al Arabiya in an exclusive interview on Wednesday. He also said the US remains opposed to Israel’s Rafah offensive even after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to move forward with the plan.

Speaking from Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah during his sixth visit to the Middle East amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Blinken also underscored the need for more aid to reach civilians in the Strip.

The US, a historical ally of Israel, has been under pressure to do more regarding Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip, which was prompted by Hamas’ deadly cross-border attack on Israel on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

On the international level, Washington had blocked previous United Nations Security Council draft resolutions related to ending the war that used the word “immediate” ceasefire, the last of which was last month in a draft submitted by Algeria.

“We actually have a resolution that we put forward right now that’s before the United Nations Security Council that does call for an immediate ceasefire tied to the release of hostages, and we hope very much that countries will support that,” Blinken said when asked what the US was doing to pressure Israel. “I think that would send a strong message, a strong signal.”

There is no vote scheduled yet on the draft resolution.

Blinken in Saudi Arabia

The top US diplomat arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday on a regional tour aimed at reaching a breakthrough in the month’s long conflict as ceasefire talks were underway in Qatar.

His visit also comes as Netanyahu has insisted that a ground offensive on Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost town, is essential to achieve victory over Hamas.

There have been concerns about the civilians displaced in the area and the loss of civilian lives that any offensive will leave.

“Well, we’ve been very clear. President [Joe] Biden has been very clear that we cannot support a major ground operation, military operation in Rafah,” Blinken said.

“There are, as you know, 1.4 million or so civilians in Rafah, many of them displaced from other parts in Gaza. There’s no effective way of getting them out of the way and to safety, and even the people that would remain in Rafah would be in terrible jeopardy.”

Since Israel declared war in response to the Oct. 7 attack, Netanyahu has said a central goal was to destroy the Hamas military capabilities.

Earlier this week, Biden spoke with Netanyahu and warned the Israeli premier against proceeding with the plan.

However, Netanyahu said he was determined to push forward, telling lawmakers on Tuesday that he made the position “supremely clear” to Biden.

Nevertheless, the Israeli leader agreed to Biden’s request to dispatch a delegation to the US to hear its concerns about the Rafah plan and search for an alternative approach.

Blinken said that the Israeli team will head to the US next week in order “to look at a different way of dealing with the remaining problem of Hamas in Rafah.”

Blinken did not disclose what the US alternatives were, but when asked if Netanyahu might end up rejecting them, he insisted that “we don’t and will not support a major ground operation in Rafah. And right now, our focus is on showing that there are alternatives to deal with the ongoing challenge of Hamas but in a way that doesn’t further jeopardize the safety, the security of the lives of innocent people who are caught in this crossfire of Hamas’s making.”

“We have to have a chance to talk to the Israelis about this, but as I said, what we don’t want to see is a major ground operation because we don’t see how that can be done without doing terrible harm to civilians. But at the same time, it is imperative to do something about Hamas, because Hamas has brought nothing but death and destruction to Palestinians,” he said.