Omani, US foreign ministers discuss Gaza cease-fire, regional developments

By Ibrahim al-Khazen

ISTANBUL (AA) – Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Al-Busaidi and his US counterpart Antony Blinken discussed a cease-fire in war-torn Gaza and related developments in the region on Friday.

According to a statement issued by the Omani Foreign Ministry, the two top diplomats spoke on the phone and during their conversation, emphasized the importance of facilitating the entry of sufficient relief aid into Gaza.

They also stressed the importance of financially and politically supporting the Palestinian Authority to assume its responsibilities.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators have been working for long to reach a cease-fire and hostage swap deal between Hamas and Israel.

The UN Security Council approved a resolution on Monday in support of US President Joe Biden's late-May proposal for a Gaza cease-fire.

Israel and Hamas recently exchanged accusations of obstructing the implementation of a cease-fire proposal floated by Biden last month.

On Tuesday, Blinken said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "reaffirmed his commitment" to a Gaza cease-fire proposal during their meeting on Monday evening.

Netanyahu or any member of his government has not publicly endorsed the proposal.

On Wednesday, Hamas accused Blinken of attempting to exonerate Israel for obstructing the cease-fire deal, saying it dealt "positively" and "responsibly" with all proposals to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza and release all detainees.

Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

Nearly 37,300 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and more than 85,000 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Over eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar