US' Blinken calls suffering of Gazans 'gut-wrenching'

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday called the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza after three months of Israeli attacks "gut-wrenching," adding that "there has to be another way" forward that addresses Israel's concerns.

"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 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

He described “the tragedy” in the besieged strip as "devastating" and added: "It also reinforces my conviction that there has to be and there is another way that answers Israel's most profound concerns and questions."

"Israelis have to live with security. They can't have a repeat of October 7. No country would accept the repeat of October 7," he said.

Since the beginning of the conflict on Oct. 7, US officials have stressed their solidarity with Israel in the wake of Hamas’ cross-border raid, which killed around 1,200 people, while also urging it to avoid the mistakes the US made in the wake of the September 2001 terrorist attacks.

Following that raid, Israel has launched relentless military attacks on Gaza for over three months now, drawing international outrage for attacking hospitals, civilians, and schools.

During Israel’s military campaign, at least 24,448 Palestinians have been killed and 61,504 others injured. The majority of the victims were children and women.

According to the UN, 85% of the population of Gaza is already internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine.