Sawt Falasteen - Rubio to begin Israel visit in aftermath of Qatar strike

The trip is taking place after President Donald Trump rebuked Israel over the unprecedented attack against Hamas leaders meeting in an upscale neighbourhood of Doha on Tuesday.

It marked Israel's first such strike against US ally Qatar and has put renewed strain on diplomatic efforts to bring about a truce in war-ravaged Gaza.

Before departing for the region on Saturday, Rubio told reporters that while Trump was "not happy" about the strike, it was "not going to change the nature of our relationship with the Israelis".

But he added that the United States and Israel were "going to have to talk about" its impact on truce efforts.

Trump has chided Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the attack, which targeted Hamas leaders gathering to discuss a new ceasefire proposal put forward by the United States.

Netanyahu has defended the operation, saying on Saturday that killing senior Hamas officials would remove the "main obstacle" to ending the war.

The talk of a ceasefire, still out of reach after months of failed negotiations, came as Israel has been intensifying its campaign in the Gaza Strip.

In recent days, it has ramped up efforts to seize control of Gaza City, the territory's largest urban area, telling residents to evacuate and blowing up numerous high-rise buildings it said were being used by Hamas.

While thousands of people have evacuated the city, according to the Israeli military and Hamas, many more remain.

As of late August, the UN estimated that around one million people were living in the city and its surrounding areas, where it has declared a famine it blamed on Israeli aid restrictions.

Bakri Diab, who fled western Gaza City for the south, said Israeli strikes continued there as well.

"All the occupation has done is force people to crowd into places with no basic services and no safety," said the 35-year-old father of four.

Gaza's civil defence agency said 32 people were killed by Israeli fire on Saturday.

Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the details provided by the civil defence agency or the Israeli military.

- 'One obstacle' -

Netanyahu and his government have defied international criticism throughout the nearly two-year war, but it continued to mount this week.

On Friday, the UN General Assembly voted to back a revival of the two-state solution, in open defiance of Israeli opposition.

Israeli allies Britain and France, alongside several other Western nations, are set to recognise Palestinian statehood at a UN gathering this month out of exasperation at Israel's conduct of the Gaza war and in the occupied West Bank.

London and Paris, joined by Berlin, also called for an immediate halt to Israel's offensive in Gaza City.

Nevertheless, Israel retains the backing of its most powerful ally and biggest arms supplier, the United States.

Ahead of Rubio's visit, State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the diplomatic chief would show "our commitment to fight anti-Israel actions including unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state that rewards Hamas terrorism".

"He will also emphasise our shared goals: ensuring Hamas never rules over Gaza again and bringing all the hostages home."

At home, opponents of the Netanyahu government have sought to put pressure on ministers to end the war in return for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

On Saturday, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the main campaign group, accused the Israeli premier of being the "one obstacle" to freeing the hostages and accused him of repeatedly sabotaging ceasefire efforts.

Of the 251 people taken hostage by Palestinian militants in October 2023, 47 remain in Gaza, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead.

- 'Alarming passivity' -

Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, said Rubio was unlikely to push Israel toward a ceasefire.

"There is an alarming passivity in actually getting to a ceasefire in Gaza," said Katulis, who worked on Middle East policy under former president Bill Clinton.

"The administration seems to be listening more to its own base of Huckabees and other evangelical Christians allied with right-wing Israelis," he said, referring to the US Ambassador in Jerusalem, Mike Huckabee, a Baptist pastor.

In Jerusalem, Rubio will visit the Western Wall with Netanyahu on Sunday, according to the Israeli prime minister's office.

The war was sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures.

Israel's retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed at least 64,803 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

I.Saadi--SF-PST