Blinken added that Hamas has “cynically weaponized the suffering of Palestinians,” and pointed to a Wall Street Journal report that purported to reveal a message that the late Hamas terror leader Yahya Sinwar sent to mediators, in which he called,
1. the death of Palestinian civilians “necessary sacrifices”
2. and argued that the more innocent Palestinians were killed, the more Hamas would benefit.

Blinken panned both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority for some of their policies over the past several years.

“Israelis must abandon the myth that they can carry out de facto annexation [of the West Bank] without cost and consequence to Israel’s democracy, to its standing and to its security,” Blinken contended.

He lamented,
“Israel is expanding official settlements and nationalizing land at a faster clip than any time in the last decade, while turning a blind eye to unprecedented growth in illegal outposts.

Violent attacks by extremist settlers against Palestinian civilians have reached record levels,”