Tel Aviv – Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to Israel on Wednesday morning for his seventh visit to the country since Hamas militants staged a bloody October 7 terror attack on the Jewish state, instantly sparking . the war in the group's stronghold in the Gaza Strip.
Blinken said when he arrived that the Biden administration was “determined” to see Hamas and Israel agree to a ceasefire in the conflict, which health officials in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory say has killed more than 34,000 people. mostly women. and children
Desperate for more American support, Israelis gathered outside Blinken's hotel in Tel Aviv, some of them holding placards expressing the hope that American pressure would help bring home the remaining 133 hostages still believed to be held in Gaza, including five US nationals still believed to be alive.
Blinken returned to Israel after stops in Jordan and Saudi Arabia, and met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday to discuss the latest ceasefire proposal. leaders of Hamas I've been revising this draft for a couple of days and they were expected to respond as soon as Wednesday.
“We are determined to get a ceasefire that will bring the abductees home and to get it now,” Blinken told Herzog as they faced news cameras Wednesday. “The only reason there won't be a deal is because of Hamas. There is an offer on the table, and as we said, no delays, no excuses.”
Blinken told Israeli protesters outside his hotel in Tel Aviv on Wednesday that he had delivered the same message to the families of the remaining hostages he met shortly after returning to Israel.
“Bringing your loved ones home is at the heart of everything we're trying to do, and we won't rest until everyone — man, woman, soldier, civilian, young, old — comes home,” he told the group. “There is a very strong proposal on the table right now. Hamas has to say yes and it has to. That is our determination, and we will not rest, we will not stop until you are reunited with your loved ones. So please stay strong, keep the faith. We'll be with you every day until we make it.”
Oded Balilty/AP
It can't happen soon enough for dozens of families, including Aviva Siegel's. Her American husband Keith is still among those detained by Hamas, 208 days after he was arrested on October 7.
Over the weekend, he appeared in a Hamas propaganda video. For Siegel, it was proof, at least, that her husband was still alive.
“I think the pain and the anguish is unimaginable,” he told CBS News in an emotional interview. “I feel like I'm torn to pieces… I know Keith has had enough. My family has had enough. My country has had enough.”
Aviva was a hostage, but was released after 51 days in captivity.
She and her daughter were among the relatives of the American hostages who had a face-to-face meeting with Blinken on Wednesday.
“The feeling was very grateful,” Aviva's daughter Elan told CBS News after the meeting. “I think we all feel, and not just American citizens, I think Israel feels very grateful for what the United States has been doing since October 7.”
Headquarters of the Hostage Families Forum
A statement from the collective Hostages Families Forum Headquarters, which represents all the families of the captives, characterized the discussion with Blinken as “positive, with Blinken conveying cautious optimism about the emerging deal for their release.”
In Jerusalem, Blinken was also pressing Netanyahu to increase the flow of desperately needed aid to Gaza and ensure its safe distribution. Israel has taken steps to allow more aid by land and sea, and aid agencies acknowledge and increase, but say it is not enough to avert the threat of starvation facing tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians in the enclave
CBS News' Tucker Reals contributed to this report.
Ramy Inocencio
