Egypt was a real and effective partner in dealing with the latest violence between Israel and the Palestinians, Reuters quoted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as saying during an event at the American embassy in Cairo on Wednesday. Egypt and the US are working together to let Israelis and Palestinians live in safety and security, Blinken said according to Reuters. During his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Tuesday, Blinken pledged an additional $75 million in development and economic aid to the Palestinians in 2021, $5.5 million in immediate disaster relief for Gaza and $32 million to the UN Palestinian aid agency. This brings overall US assistance to Palestinians under the Biden administration to over $360 million after the previous administration led by Trump cut off assistance to Palestine. Blinken stressed, however, that the US intends to ensure that Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, does not benefit from the humanitarian aid provided. Moreover, Blinken warned against actions by Israel or the Palestinians that risk inciting tensions or ultimately undermining the two-state solution, to which he said Washington is still committed. Such actions, he said, include Israeli settlement activity in occupied territory Palestinians seek for a state, possible Israeli evictions of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, and incitement to militant violence on the Palestinian side. Blinken arrived in Cairo earlier on Wednesday as part of a Middle East tour aimed at bolstering a Cairo-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and other Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip last week. The Egyptian-sponsored ceasefire deal, which was praised by regional and international countries, has been reached between Israel and the Palestinian factions to end an 11-day military assault on the Gaza Strip. It came into effect as of 21 May at 2am (23:00 GMT) Palestinian time. The 11-day fighting has been deemed the most serious since 2014 as Israel upped aggression on Gaza with artillery and air strikes in response to rocket attacks on Israeli towns from the strip. At least 254 Palestinians were killed in Gaza, including 66 children, with over 1,900 wounded, according to Palestinian health authorities, while the death toll in Israel stood at 13. Prior to Egypt's stop, Blinken's tour has included Jerusalem and Ramallah and he is still due to visit Jordan.
