During this week’s World Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland, Blinken remarked on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, which sharply escalated after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel when 1,200 were killed and hundreds were kidnapped. Since then, the Israeli response has largely consisted of indiscriminate bombing campaigns and has resulted in the estimated deaths of more than 31,000 Palestinians, with another 61,079 injured. A staggering 92 percent of those killed have been civilians. “For me, I think for so many of us, what we’re seeing every single day in Gaza is gut wrenching. And the suffering we’re seeing among innocent men, women, and children breaks my heart,” Blinken said during a Q&A session at the conference. The Associated Press (AP) captured statements made by Blinken speaking at a news conference after meeting with Israeli leaders, saying Israel “must stop taking steps that undercut the Palestinians’ ability to govern themselves effectively.” Blinken said Israel “must be a partner of the Palestinian leaders who are willing to lead their people” and live “side by side in peace with Israel,” the AP reported. He added that violence (including Palestinian deaths) committed by Israeli settlers, settlement expansion, home demolitions, and evictions “all make it harder, not easier, for Israel to achieve lasting peace and security.” Blinken’s call for a two-state solution came within days of one of his European counterparts making similar remarks. “The only way is the creation of a Palestinian state,” Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, said during a recent news conference. He added that an independent Palestinian state would offer a “horizon of hope” for Palestinians. The Biden administration is likely to face strong pushback from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who continues to remain opposed to the proposition of ever allowing Palestinians to have a state of their own. For decades, Netanyahu has been openly opposed to making Palestine an internationally recognized country, going so far as to provide funding and support to the very Hamas terrorist organization that attacked his country on Oct. 7 in a bid to prevent a two-state solution.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is calling on Israel to pursue a two-state solution with Palestinians as the only pathway toward lasting peace in the region.
