A demand by Jordan and Egypt for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza was rejected by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at an Arab foreign ministers meeting in Amman on Saturday.
Blinken said that a truce would be counterproductive, and made clear the furthest he would go was support for a humanitarian pause to allow the delivery of aid and the evacuation of civilians from the besieged enclave.
“It is our view now that a ceasefire would simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat what it did on Oct. 7,” Blinken told a news conference after the talks, referring to the militant group’s attack on southern Israel that triggered the latest Gaza conflict.
Foreign ministers of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, Qatar, and a senior Palestinian official met with Blinken after holding a separate consultative meeting earlier and another with Jordan’s King Abdullah.
The meeting was attended by Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan, along with Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan from the UAE, Qatar’s Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, Egypt’s Sameh Shoukry, and Hussein Al-Sheikh from the Palestine Liberation Organization.
According to a Jordanian Foreign Ministry statement, the meeting reaffirmed Arab calls for an “immediate” ceasefire and “undisrupted” delivery of relief assistance as part of efforts to stop the war.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Shoukry and Blinken, Safadi said that “slaughter and war crimes need to stop, and also the immunity given to Israel before the international law.”
He called for “immediate” delivery of aid into Gaza and a halt to Israeli displacement of Palestinians, and also voiced alarm at the situation in the occupied West Bank, where “settlers are permitted to kill innocent Palestinians.”
Shoukry also raised concerns over the mounting civilian toll in Gaza, describing it as “collective punishment,” and saying that “the slaughter of civilians cannot be justified in (any) terms even as self-defense.”
The Egyptian foreign minister called for an “immediate ceasefire without any condition,” and said that Israel needs to end its violations of international humanitarian law.
He also highlighted “double standards” in dealing with the mounting civilian toll, saying: “Arab blood is no less worthy.”
Blinken reaffirmed Washington’s support for “humanitarian pauses” to ensure civilians receive assistance.
The senior US envoy said that he agreed with his Arab counterparts on the need for aid corridors, acknowledging that what has so far entered Gaza is “inadequate.”
Asked why Washington is failing to exert pressure to stop the killing of civilians, Blinken said that “Israel has the right to defend itself, but also to take means to ensure the protection of civilians and minimize harm to them.”
He claimed Hamas “embeds itself” within the civilian population, and is using civilian infrastructure as command centers and for ammunition storage.
“But Israel has an obligation to defend civilians. This is what I told the Israelis,” he said.
Washington’s top diplomat said that he is saddened to see bodies of children pulled from the rubble in Gaza. “I am a father and I have children and I know how it feels.”
Ending the press conference, Safadi said: “Self-defense? How would you explain this term to a father who is unable to protect his children and find shelter for them, not even in a refugee camp, a hospital or a UN organization?”
Before meeting Blinken, King Abdullah told the foreign ministers “to maintain Arab coordination and speak in one voice to the international community regarding the dangerous escalations in Gaza.”
He added: “Arab states have the responsibility of pushing the international community and world powers to stop the war on Gaza, allow the uninterrupted delivery of aid, and protect civilians.”
The king warned that continued fighting would lead to an “explosion in the region,” a statement said.
The Jordanian ruler also urged constant support for international relief organizations working in Gaza, especially UNRWA.
He reiterated that a political solution is needed to achieve just and comprehensive peace on the basis of a two-state solution
NEW YORK, November 4. /TASS/. US and European officials have started talking to their Ukrainian counterparts about possible peace talks with Russia and what Kiev might have to give up to reach a deal, NBC television reported, citing US officials.
They started "quietly talking to the Ukrainian government about what possible peace negotiations with Russia might entail" to end the conflict, the report said.
"The conversations have included very broad outlines of what Ukraine might need to give up to reach a deal," it said.
Some of the talks took place last month, NBC said. They reflect concerns that the conflict has reached a stalemate and about the ability to continue providing aid to Ukraine, according to the report.
The discussions are an acknowledgment of the dynamics militarily on the ground in Ukraine and politically in the U.S. and Europe, officials said.
They began amid concerns among U.S. and European officials that the war has reached a stalemate and about the ability to continue providing aid to Ukraine, officials said. Biden administration officials also are worried that Ukraine is running out of forces, while Russia has a seemingly endless supply, officials said. Ukraine is also struggling with recruiting and has recently seen public protests about some of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s open-ended conscription requirements.
And there is unease in the U.S. government with how much less public attention the war in Ukraine has garnered since the Israel-Hamas war began nearly a month ago, the officials said. Officials fear that shift could make securing additional aid for Kyiv more difficult.
Some U.S. military officials have privately begun using the term “stalemate” to describe the current battle in Ukraine, with some saying it may come down to which side can maintain a military force the longest. Neither side is making large strides on the battlefield, which some U.S. officials now describe as a war of inches. Officials also have privately said Ukraine likely only has until the end of the year or shortly thereafter before more urgent discussions about peace negotiations should begin. U.S. officials have shared their views on such a timeline with European allies, officials said.
“Any decisions about negotiations are up to Ukraine,” Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the National Security Council, said in a statement. “We are focused on continuing to stand strongly in support of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and independence against Russian aggression.”
An administration official also noted that the U.S. has participated with Ukraine in discussions of its peace summit framework but said the White House “is not aware of any other conversations with Ukraine about negotiations at the moment.”
Questions about manpower
President Joe Biden has been intensely focused on Ukraine’s depleting military forces, according to two people familiar with the matter.
"Manpower is at the top of the administration’s concerns right now,” one said. The U.S. and its allies can provide Ukraine with weaponry, this person said, “but if they don’t have competent forces to use them it doesn’t do a lot of good”
Biden has requested that Congress authorize additional funding for Ukraine, but, so far, the effort has failed to progress because of resistance from some congressional Republicans. The White House has linked aid for Ukraine and Israel in its most recent request. That has support among some congressional Republicans, but other GOP lawmakers have said they’ll only vote for an Israel-only aid package.
Before the Israel-Hamas war began, White House officials publicly expressed confidence that additional Ukraine funding would pass Congress before the end of this year, while privately conceding concerns about how difficult that might be.
Biden had been reassuring U.S. allies that Congress will approve more aid for Ukraine and planned a major speech on the issue. Once Hamas terrorists attacked Israel on Oct. 7, the president’s focus shifted to the Middle East, and his Ukraine speech morphed into an Oval Office address about why the U.S. should financially support Ukraine and Israel.
Is Putin ready to negotiate?
The Biden administration does not have any indication that Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to negotiate with Ukraine, two U.S. officials said. Western officials say Putin still believes he can “wait out the West,” or keep fighting until the U.S. and its allies lose domestic support for funding Ukraine or the struggle to supply Kyiv with weapons and ammunition becomes too costly, officials said.
Both Ukraine and Russia are struggling to keep up with military supplies. Russia has ramped up production of artillery rounds, and, over the next couple years may be able to produce 2 million shells per year, according to a Western official. But Russia fired an estimated 10 million rounds in Ukraine last year, the official said, so it will also have to rely on other countries.
The Biden administration has spent $43.9 billion on security assistance for Ukraine since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, according to the Pentagon. A U.S. official says the administration has about $5 billion left to send to Ukraine before money runs out. There would be no aid left for Ukraine if the administration hadn’t said it found a $6.2 billion accounting error from months of over-valuing equipment sent to Kyiv.
Public support slipping
Progress in Ukraine’s counteroffensive has been very slow, and hope that Ukraine will make significant advances, including reaching the coast near Russia’s frontlines, is fading. A lack of significant progress on the battlefield in Ukraine does not help with trying to reverse the downward trend in public support for sending more aid, officials said.
A Gallup poll released this week shows decreasing support for sending additional aid to Ukraine, with 41% of Americans saying the U.S. is doing too much to help Kyiv. That’s a significant change from just three months ago when 24% of Americans said they felt that way. The poll also found that 33% of Americans think the U.S. is doing the right amount for Ukraine, while 25% said the U.S. is not doing enough.
Public sentiment toward assisting Ukraine is also starting to soften in Europe.
As incentive for Zelenskyy to consider negotiations, NATO could offer Kyiv some security guarantees, even without Ukraine formally becoming part of the alliance, officials said. That way, officials said, the Ukrainians could be assured that Russia would be deterred from invading again.
In August national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters, “We do not assess that the conflict is a stalemate.” Instead, Sullivan said, Ukraine is taking territory on a “methodical, systematic basis.”
But a Western official acknowledged there has not been a lot of movement by either side in some time, and with the cold weather approaching it will be tough for either Ukraine or Russia to break that pattern. The official said it will not be impossible, but it will be difficult.
U.S. officials also assess that Russia will attempt to hit critical infrastructure in Ukraine again this winter, attempting to force some civilians to endure a frigid winter without heat or power.
Administration officials expect Ukraine to want more time to fight on the battlefield, particularly with new, heavier equipment, “but there’s a growing sense that it’s too late, and it’s time to do a deal,” the former senior administration official said. It is not certain that Ukraine would mount another spring offensive.
One senior administration official pushed back on any notion of the U.S. nudging Ukraine toward talks. The Ukrainians, the official said, “are on the clock in terms of weather, but they are not on the clock in terms of geopolitics.”
Officials said "Ukraine likely only has until the end of the year or shortly thereafter before more urgent discussions about peace negotiations should begin," NBC said.
Russia has repeatedly stated its views on the situation around Ukraine at different levels. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow has always been and remains open to a diplomatic solution to the crisis and is ready to respond to serious proposals, while the Kiev regime has interrupted and banned negotiations with Russia.
The Kremlin has dismissed speculation that it could be using body doubles of President Vladimir Putin for some events. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov ridiculed such claims as “amusing.”
“We have only one Putin!” Peskov said at the ‘Russia’ exhibition that opened in Moscow on Saturday. He said that many ridiculous, absurd, and amusing things appear in various news outlets and on social media, naming the rumors about the Russian president’s alleged body doubles as examples.
The Kremlin spokesman joked that “experts” on the internet are now wondering how many doppelgangers Putin has and which ones they are seeing each day. “Today [the Russian officials and public figures led by Putin] laid flowers to the Minin and Pozharsky Monument… Was it [Putin’s] third or fourth body double? I have no idea,” the spokesman jokingly added.
On November 4, Russia celebrates Unity Day, a holiday that commemorates the end of the ‘Time of Troubles’ in the 17th century and the expulsion of the Polish-Lithuanian occupation forces from Moscow by a volunteer militia army led by Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and a merchant, Kuzma Minin
The Kremlin already laid to rest the rumors about Putin’s doppelgangers last week after the UK’s Mirror newspaper reported on the issue, citing an anonymous Russian Telegram channel called General SVR. The paper claimed that the president’s body doubles were even used for some public appearances, including foreign visits. It also cited a recent Japanese TV report claiming that Putin had doppelgangers.
Similar statements have also been made by the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence, Kirill Budanov.
Peskov had previously already dismissed reports about Putin’s doppelgangers, calling them “lies” back in April. He also said that the Russian leader has “fantastic fitness for working” and can work nonstop for several days in a row. The Kremlin spokesman added that he has experienced this firsthand while working directly under Putin’s leadership.
Putin Lays Flowers at Monument to Minin, Pozharsky to Mark Russia's Day of National Unity
On Saturday, Russia celebrates National Unity Day - a relatively new national holiday, but one with deep historical roots.
Sputnik is live as Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the monument to Minin and Pozharsky on Red Square on National Unity Day, which is celebrated in Russia today.
The ceremony is also attended by representatives of religious denominations, as well as public and youth organizations. Usually, after the solemn part of the ceremony, the head of state finds time to communicate with those present at the laying. Last year, for example, volunteers working in the new Russian regions were among those present.
The Day of National Unity has been celebrated in Russia since 2005. The holiday was established to commemorate the liberation of Moscow from Polish invaders in November 1612 by troops of the people's militia led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Washington, DC, on Saturday in support of Palestinians. They marched to the White House where they chanted "Guilty!"
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of the US capital to protest against Israeli military activities in the Gaza Strip and the US support for Israel, protesters came to the city on buses, many of them from out of state, including as far away as Georgia and Massachusetts.
The rally, dubbed the "National March on Washington. Free Palestine" kicked off at 2 p.m. EST (18:00 GMT), while people started to arrive at Freedom Plaza, located just a couple of blocks away from the White House, hours earlier.
Organizers expected up to 30,000 people total to take part in the pro-Palestine rally, but their expectations were greatly exceeded. During the rally, Brian Becker, the National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition told a Sputnik that more than 100,000 people participated in the protest.
Protesters gather with placards and flags during the 'London Rally For Palestine' in Trafalgar Square, central London on November 4, 2023 [Justin Tallis/AFP
"Well, there are over 100,000 people, we don’t know the exact number. It’s the biggest demonstration to support Palestinian rights in the history of the United States," Becker said.
The participants are holding banners reading, "Resistance against the occupation is a human right," "Stop the Palestinian genocide," "Israel bombs hospitals, Biden funds it," "Biden, we will remember in November [of 2024)]," and simply "Stop the war."
The crowd includes representatives of dozens of American activist groups, including the renowned Jewish Voice For Peace, the ANSWER Coalition and Code Pink, among others, as well as just regular residents of the area and other US states. Many came with flags and wore Palestinian-themed clothing.
Several large screens have been installed along Pennsylvania Ave for people to watch and listen to the rally. Multiple international media are covering the protest. Many participants carry the flags of their own countries who also oppose the current events in Gaza, including Turkiye, Tunisia and Egypt.
Many locals brought with them small children who were asking parents questions about the event, and Sputnik's correspondent could hear how the adults were explaining why the people are frustrated with the US government’s support for Israel’s military operation and activities.
People who can’t attend the rally can watch the live broadcast online via links posted by activist groups.
The protest has been peaceful; however, an increased law enforcement presence has been visible. The central streets where the rally is expected to march have been shut down to traffic. Local authorities advised residents about street closures days before the rally. At some streets, trucks are placed to ensure the blocking off of roads to vehicles.
The rally will be moving down the streets around the White House and expected to last for some 2 hours.
From 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. (20:00-00:00 GMT) organizers are also planning to hold a vigil in Lafayette Park and a rally along the White House sidewalk.
Cities across the United States have seen multiple mass protests since the start of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in early October. Every day activists approach congressional lawmakers with calls to address the situation and urge a ceasefire. Almost every day, mass rallies, often with dozens and even hundreds arrested, are held across the country.
The ongoing rally in Washington, DC, has become the largest pro-Palestinian demonstration of all, the Sputnik correspondent reported. About an hour since the start of the rally, people were continuing to show up, the correspondent said. Large groups of people with Palestinian flags and pro-Palestinian banners are currently moving down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the main location of the rally.
On October 7, Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip and breached the border. In response, Israel launched strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to more than 2 million people, cutting off supplies of water, food, and fuel. On October 27, Israel launched a large scale ground incursion inside the Gaza Strip to eliminate Hamas fighters and rescue hostages.
The escalation of the conflict has resulted in the deaths of around 1,400 people in Israel and over 9,000 in the Gaza Strip, and raised the risk of a wider regional conflagration due to concerns about Iran or Lebanese militant group Hezbollah joining the fray.
