Blinken warns Netanyahu: 'Israel's' existence at risk
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Blinken said that Hamas would continue its operations in the Strip if "Israel" decides to continue on its current path and that such conditions would lay the groundwork for further escalations in the future.
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Palestinians burn a photo of "Israel's" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken while protesting against Blinken's meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, occupied West Bank, Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
A report by Axios on Friday revealed that US Secretary of State Blinken privately warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet that "Israel's" existence is in peril and that they "might not realize it until it's too late," a source familiar with the meeting quoted Blinken as saying.
The source told Axios that during the meeting, Blinken stressed the urgency of devising a coherent strategy for the post-war period in Gaza. Without such a plan, he warned, "Israel" could face a formidable insurgency that it would struggle to contain.
"You need a coherent plan, or either you're going to be stuck in Gaza," Blinken said, according to the source.
Blinken further expressed certainty that Hamas would continue its operations in the Strip if "Israel" decides to continue on its current path, and that such conditions would lay the groundwork for further escalations in the future.
After Blinken's remarks, Netanyahu was heard saying "We will have our hands full for decades," as per the source.
Read more: 'Israel' requests list of weapons from US, ignores list of US demands
Following their meeting, Netanyahu said in a statement that "Israel" recognizes the "need to evacuate the civilian population from war zones in Gaza and to take care of humanitarian needs and that we are taking action in this direction."
"But I also told Blinken that we can't defeat Hamas without going into Rafah and dismantling the remaining battalions there. I told him that I hope we can do it with US support but if we need to we will do it alone," he added.
More than a million Palestinians are currently taking refuge in Rafah. South Africa has recently issued a plea for the International Court of Justice to add provisions in order to prevent an impending massacre.
In response, the ICJ issued a decision stating that no extra measures would be taken apart from those already ordered on January 26, 2024. The Court justified its refusal on the basis that it deemed those ordered on January 26 to be sufficient.
"This perilous situation demands immediate and effective implementation of the provisional measures indicated by the Court in its Order of 26 January 2024, which are applicable throughout the Gaza Strip, including in Rafah, and does not demand the indication of additional provisional measures," the ICJ's decision reads.
Read more: Russia, China veto inefficient US Gaza ceasefire resolution in UNSC
Earlier in the day, the UN Security Council voted to reject a US-drafted resolution as it failed to include a sustainable and durable ceasefire. Because of this, Algeria, China and Russia vetoed the resolution.
Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Zhang Jun said that the call was laying preconditions for a ceasefire that will enable the continuation of the Gaza genocide.
Russia's envoy Vassily Nebenzia labelled the US resolution a "standard American deception" and said that Russia does not tolerate ceasefire calls that lead to nowhere.
"The purpose of the American decision is to buy time and its goal is politicized so that Israel can escape punishment," Nebenzia said.
Algeria's representative, on his part, lamented the rejection of a previous Algerian-drafted resolution.
Had the Council adopted Algeria's resolution in late February, it could have prevented the loss of thousands of innocent lives, Algeria's UN representative Amar Benjama said.
