‘Shame’: Palestine UN mission decries Blinken’s post ignoring Gaza killings
In his social media post marking 100 days of Israeli war, US secretary of state makes no mention of Palestinian deaths.
Palestine’s mission to the United Nations has criticised US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for not mentioning some 24,000 Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip in his post commemorating 100 days of Israel’s war.
“Shame on those who remain complicit and not call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Shame on them,” the mission said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday.
Blinken’s social media post on Sunday night only referred to the captives taken by Hamas, saying the US has vowed to bring them back since “100 days of captivity in Gaza is far too long”.
A total of 24,100 Palestinians – including more than 9,600 children – have been killed and about 61,000 injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza since October 7, the day Hamas launched a surprise attack inside the Israeli territory.
Israeli authorities say Hamas fighters killed 1,139 people that day and took more than 200 captives, of which about 132 remain in Gaza. On Sunday, a Reuters news agency report, quoting Israeli officials, said at least 25 of them have died in captivity.
The other captives were exchanged during a weeklong truce in November.
Even the White House statement marking the 100th day of the war on Gaza made no mention of Palestinian killings and displacement of residents.
In the message, US President Joe Biden lamented the capture of the captives, stating that “for each of those 100 days, the hostages and their families have been at the forefront of my mind”.
Biden hailed the US efforts to bring back the captives and laid blame on Hamas for failing to extend a deal to return more of them.
Meanwhile, Israel’s relentless bombardment of Gaza continues with no signs of abating, as the humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave deepens and threats of a regional spillover of the war loom.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the war will “continue until victory” but faces domestic pressure over bringing the captives back.
Global calls to end the war continue, with rallies held across the world and the US capital seeing one of its largest turnouts yet.
Al Jazeera, 2024
