Israel ‘agreed’ to take US Rafah concerns into consideration: White House
Al Jazeera
Top US and Israeli officials have ‘constructive engagement on Rafah’ during talks previously delayed by Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Washington, DC – Israeli officials have agreed to take the United States’s “concerns” about a possible invasion of Rafah in Gaza into consideration after a virtual meeting, the White House has said.
It remains unclear whether the talks on Monday will push Israel to delay or cancel its planned assault on the crowded southern Gaza city, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have taken shelter.
Officials from both countries had a “constructive engagement on Rafa”, the US White House said in a statement.
The meeting was attended by government experts and senior representatives, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart Tzachi Hanegbi, according to the statement.
“The US side expressed its concerns with various courses of action in Rafah. The Israeli side agreed to take these concerns into account and to have follow up discussions between experts,” the White House said, adding that further discussions will be held, including another meeting as early as next week.
