Speaking in Doha, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized "irresponsible" and "inflammatory" statements made by Israeli ministers and lawmakers that called for a resettlement of Palestinians outside Gaza.
Blinken said Palestinian civilians must be allowed to "return home as soon as conditions allow."
“They cannot and they must not be pressed to leave Gaza,” he said in a press conference alongside Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
His comments come after Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir sparked outrage when both far-right ministers made comments advocating for the resettlement of Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip.
Here are the latest developments:
- Healthcare critical: The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said a key hospital in central Gaza "must remain functional" after several aid organizations withdrew their medical staff from the facility due to increased Israeli military activity in the area. WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Al-Aqsa hospital was the "most important hospital remaining" in central Gaza, and demanded that medical staff and their families be protected.
- Khan Younis strikes: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it targeted the southern city of Khan Younis with 30 strikes overnight into Monday. Israeli troops and air force hit "underground targets, terror infrastructure, and weapons storage facilities," the IDF said. CNN cannot independently verify operational details reported by the IDF.
- IDF admits to striking journalists: The IDF admitted on Monday it carried out an airstrike that killed two journalists working for Al Jazeera in Gaza on Sunday, saying forces were targeting a terrorist. “An IDF aircraft identified and struck a terrorist who operated an aircraft that posed a threat to IDF troops,” the military told CNN.
- Israel names judge: The Israeli government has named its judge for the panel that will consider South Africa’s claim at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Israel is “in violation of its obligations under the Genocide Convention” because of its war in Gaza. Israel firmly rejected the accusation and said it would appear before the court.
- Post-war Gaza stance: The resettlement of Palestinians out of Gaza is "outright, officially and unequivocally" not Israel’s position, Israeli President Isaac Herzog told NBC on Sunday. It comes after some Israeli cabinet members appeared to suggest a forced displacement of Palestinians out of Gaza. Almost 90% of Gaza’s more than 2 million population has been forcibly displaced due to Israel’s war on Hamas, according to the UN.