Blinken reportedly warns Israeli FM Ashkenazi US backing on Gaza cannot last much longer

Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, in a conversation with US State Secretary Antony Blinken on Wednesday, told the latter that Tel Aviv will need another few days to complete military operations in Gaza, having his counterpart responding that the US expects them to end soon, Axios reported, citing an Israeli official.
 

In the call, Blinken reportedly informed Ashkenazi that the US will not support the French initiative on Gaza at the UN Security Council, but American backing for Israel on the Gaza issue, particularly at the UN, cannot last much longer.

The State Department issued a statement after the call, saying that the Secretary and the Israeli FM discussed "efforts to end the violence, which has claimed the lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians including children".

“The Secretary noted that the United States would remain engaged with Israel, the Palestinian Authority and regional stakeholders in the days ahead, and reinforced the message that the US expects to see de-escalation on the path to a ceasefire", the statement said

Earlier in the day, France, together with Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan, introduced a draft resolution at the UN Security Council, calling for a ceasefire and humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip amid heated tensions between Israel and Hamas.