Jordan accuses Israel of 'ethnic cleansing' in Gaza at US-Arab talks

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sees urgent need for diplomatic resolution in Lebanon

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, held talks with Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi as part of a round of meetings with Arab representatives in London. AFP

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Jordan on Friday alleged that Israel is carrying out ethnic cleansing in the north of Gaza, as it called on the US to pressure Israel to rein in its offensives on Lebanese and Palestinian soil.

Ayman Safadi, Jordan's Foreign Minister, used meetings between the US and Arab countries in London to warn that the Middle East "stands at the brink of a regional war". He said the "only path to save the region from that" was for Israel to stop its "aggressions" to the north and south.

In strongly-worded comments, Mr Safadi said Israel's war on two fronts and "illegal measures" in the West Bank were "pushing the situation to an abyss". He said mediators trying to broker a ceasefire were trying to "get through the nightmare that the region continues to live in".

"The humanitarian situation is really difficult when we look at northern Gaza, where we do see ethnic cleansing taking place, and that has got to stop," he told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a bilateral meeting. The war has called into question a 1994 peace treaty between Jordan and Israel.

Israel has rejected war crimes allegations over its offensive in Gaza, saying Hamas's use of "human shields" is to blame for the severe humanitarian toll of the fighting. An Israeli ground campaign and intensified air assault against Hezbollah over the past month has displaced more than a million people in Lebanon.

The US, Israel's close ally, has expressed hope that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar can provide an impetus for an end to the fighting in Gaza. Mr Blinken held talks with his Jordanian counterpart and with Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati on his final leg of a five-day trip to Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Lebanon talks

Lebanon's Mr Mikati pressed Mr Blinken for more “credible” efforts at reaching at ceasefire. He referred to a US and French-led ceasefire agreement tabled in September that ended the next day with Israel’s bombing of Hezbollah’s headquarters and the killing of its leader Hassan Nasrallah.

“First, what is required is a real commitment from Israel to a ceasefire, because the previous experience regarding the American-French call, supported by the Arabs and the international community for a ceasefire affected everyone's credibility,” Mr Mikati said.

Mr Mikati reminded Mr Blinken of the devastating humanitarian consequences of Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon. "We insist on the priority of a ceasefire and deterring Israeli aggression, especially since there are more than one million and four hundred thousand Lebanese who have been displaced from the areas that are being attacked,” he said.

At least three media workers died and three were injured after Israeli troops bombed a residential cluster housing journalists in south Lebanon's Hasbara early on Friday, in an attack described by a Lebanese minister as a war crime.

The Lebanese leader, who was in Europe for a French aid summit, met Mr Blinken in London along with US special envoy James Rubin and Lebanese ambassador to Britain Rami Mortada. Mr Blinken said there was a "sense of real urgency in getting to a diplomatic resolution" in his meeting with Mr Mikati.

Hcalled for the full implementation of the 2006 UN Security Council resolution, passed after the last major Israel-Hezbollah war, that calls for the Lebanese group to withdraw north of the Litani river. An agreement would provide "real security" on the border and give people confidence to return home, he said.

"Meanwhile, we want to make sure we want to see civilians protected. We want to make sure that Lebanese armed forces are not caught in the in the crossfire," he added.

Mr Mikati said Israel "is also violating international law by attacking civilians, journalists and medical staff". He stressed that Lebanon was committed to implementing UN Security Resolution 1701 “as is, without amendment”.