Middle East

Blinken Says ‘Far Too Many’ Palestinians Killed in Israel-Hamas War

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The secretary of state said more needed to be done to get humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks on, as he begins to board his plane to travel home to Washington from Palam Air Base in New Delhi, India, Nov. 10, 2023.
Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that “far too many” Palestinians have been killed as part of Israel’s war against Hamas. The health ministry in Gaza, which is run by Hamas, says more than 11,000 people have already died in the besieged enclave since Israel launched a massive bombing campaign in response to the militant group’s attacks on Oct. 7. Speaking in India, Blinken told reporters that he welcomed pauses in military operations allowing Palestinians to move out of northern Gaza but said current measures to help civilians are insufficient. “Much more needs to be done to protect civilians and to make sure that humanitarian assistance reaches them,” Blinken said. “Far too many Palestinians have been killed, far too many have suffered these past weeks, and we want to do everything possible to prevent harm to them and to maximize the assistance that gets to them.”

Read it at Associated Press