٠٠:٠٦:٤٩US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel called on all sides 'avoid escalation' following the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, speaking in Washington DC on Wednesday.
"We are continuing to urge restraint to all parties to avoid an escalation into a wider regional conflict. And as the Secretary [Blinken] said in Singapore, the United States was not involved in the attack in Tehran," Patel underlined.
He was then questioned by a reporter on whether Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu had taken 'almost every step to scuttle the negotiations' on a ceasefire in Gaza.
"Does that send like a clear message that they don't want these negotiations?" the journalist asked. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike on Haniyeh in Iran.
"I'm not going to speak for Prime Minister Netanyahu, Saeed, and I will let him speak for himself. But in general, what I can say is that we have seen the Israelis engaged and constructive in conversations that we have been having about a ceasefire deal. And so we continue to believe both that a ceasefire deal is both achievable and urgent, and it is something that our partners in Israel want," Patel stated, adding that the US was attempting to 'close the gaps' between the sides.
Asked whether the United States stood ready to defend Israel in case of a response by Iran, Patel said Washington's commitment to Israel's security was 'ironclad'.
"Of course part of that includes the defence of Israel when it faces threats from malign actors like the Iranian regime," Patel said.
"Iran is a regime that time and time again, since 1979, has, one, been the largest and greatest exporter of terrorism, not just in the Middle East, but broadly. And it has a clear track record of not just suppressing its own people, but also funding, promoting, encouraging malign, destabilising actions across the region," he alleged.
Commenting on Israel's confirmed strike on Beirut targeting Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukr, Patel said "latest information out of Beirut suggests that he did succumb to his injuries after being taken to a hospital for treatment." Hezbollah also confirmed the death earlier.
Asked about reports suggesting that Al Jazeera Arabic journalists Ismail al-Ghoul and Rami al-Rifi had been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, Patel could not provide any information, but offered his condolences to 'the many Palestinian journalists' who lost their lives or were injured during the conflict.
"We have been absolutely clear that Israel has a moral obligation and a strategic imperative to protect civilians and that of course part of that includes journalists," Patel concluded.
Haniyeh had been in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, when he was killed.
Hamas and Iran accused Israel of the 'assassination', while Israel had not commented or claimed responsibility for the attack at the time of publication.
The Hamas political leader was a key figure in ongoing talks regarding a ceasefire in Gaza.
The strike on Tehran came shortly after Israel reported that it had hit Beirut, targeting Hezbollah commander Shukr. The IDF claimed Shukr was behind an attack on the Golan Heights at the weekend which killed 12 children. Hezbollah denied involvement in that earlier strike and blamed it on a projectile from Israel's own Iron Dome defence system which it said had been attempting to take down rocket fire directed at Israeli military installations.
'Avoid escalation' - State Dept spox on Haniyeh killing, questioned on Netanyahu's alleged attempts 'to scuttle negotiations' on Gaza ceasefire
US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel called on all sides 'avoid escalation' following the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, speaking in Washington DC on Wednesday.
"We are continuing to urge restraint to all parties to avoid an escalation into a wider regional conflict. And as the Secretary [Blinken] said in Singapore, the United States was not involved in the attack in Tehran," Patel underlined.
He was then questioned by a reporter on whether Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu had taken 'almost every step to scuttle the negotiations' on a ceasefire in Gaza.
"Does that send like a clear message that they don't want these negotiations?" the journalist asked. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike on Haniyeh in Iran.
"I'm not going to speak for Prime Minister Netanyahu, Saeed, and I will let him speak for himself. But in general, what I can say is that we have seen the Israelis engaged and constructive in conversations that we have been having about a ceasefire deal. And so we continue to believe both that a ceasefire deal is both achievable and urgent, and it is something that our partners in Israel want," Patel stated, adding that the US was attempting to 'close the gaps' between the sides.
Asked whether the United States stood ready to defend Israel in case of a response by Iran, Patel said Washington's commitment to Israel's security was 'ironclad'.
"Of course part of that includes the defence of Israel when it faces threats from malign actors like the Iranian regime," Patel said.
"Iran is a regime that time and time again, since 1979, has, one, been the largest and greatest exporter of terrorism, not just in the Middle East, but broadly. And it has a clear track record of not just suppressing its own people, but also funding, promoting, encouraging malign, destabilising actions across the region," he alleged.
Commenting on Israel's confirmed strike on Beirut targeting Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukr, Patel said "latest information out of Beirut suggests that he did succumb to his injuries after being taken to a hospital for treatment." Hezbollah also confirmed the death earlier.
Asked about reports suggesting that Al Jazeera Arabic journalists Ismail al-Ghoul and Rami al-Rifi had been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, Patel could not provide any information, but offered his condolences to 'the many Palestinian journalists' who lost their lives or were injured during the conflict.
"We have been absolutely clear that Israel has a moral obligation and a strategic imperative to protect civilians and that of course part of that includes journalists," Patel concluded.
Haniyeh had been in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, when he was killed.
Hamas and Iran accused Israel of the 'assassination', while Israel had not commented or claimed responsibility for the attack at the time of publication.
The Hamas political leader was a key figure in ongoing talks regarding a ceasefire in Gaza.
The strike on Tehran came shortly after Israel reported that it had hit Beirut, targeting Hezbollah commander Shukr. The IDF claimed Shukr was behind an attack on the Golan Heights at the weekend which killed 12 children. Hezbollah denied involvement in that earlier strike and blamed it on a projectile from Israel's own Iron Dome defence system which it said had been attempting to take down rocket fire directed at Israeli military installations.
US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel called on all sides 'avoid escalation' following the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, speaking in Washington DC on Wednesday.
"We are continuing to urge restraint to all parties to avoid an escalation into a wider regional conflict. And as the Secretary [Blinken] said in Singapore, the United States was not involved in the attack in Tehran," Patel underlined.
He was then questioned by a reporter on whether Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu had taken 'almost every step to scuttle the negotiations' on a ceasefire in Gaza.
"Does that send like a clear message that they don't want these negotiations?" the journalist asked. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike on Haniyeh in Iran.
"I'm not going to speak for Prime Minister Netanyahu, Saeed, and I will let him speak for himself. But in general, what I can say is that we have seen the Israelis engaged and constructive in conversations that we have been having about a ceasefire deal. And so we continue to believe both that a ceasefire deal is both achievable and urgent, and it is something that our partners in Israel want," Patel stated, adding that the US was attempting to 'close the gaps' between the sides.
Asked whether the United States stood ready to defend Israel in case of a response by Iran, Patel said Washington's commitment to Israel's security was 'ironclad'.
"Of course part of that includes the defence of Israel when it faces threats from malign actors like the Iranian regime," Patel said.
"Iran is a regime that time and time again, since 1979, has, one, been the largest and greatest exporter of terrorism, not just in the Middle East, but broadly. And it has a clear track record of not just suppressing its own people, but also funding, promoting, encouraging malign, destabilising actions across the region," he alleged.
Commenting on Israel's confirmed strike on Beirut targeting Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukr, Patel said "latest information out of Beirut suggests that he did succumb to his injuries after being taken to a hospital for treatment." Hezbollah also confirmed the death earlier.
Asked about reports suggesting that Al Jazeera Arabic journalists Ismail al-Ghoul and Rami al-Rifi had been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, Patel could not provide any information, but offered his condolences to 'the many Palestinian journalists' who lost their lives or were injured during the conflict.
"We have been absolutely clear that Israel has a moral obligation and a strategic imperative to protect civilians and that of course part of that includes journalists," Patel concluded.
Haniyeh had been in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, when he was killed.
Hamas and Iran accused Israel of the 'assassination', while Israel had not commented or claimed responsibility for the attack at the time of publication.
The Hamas political leader was a key figure in ongoing talks regarding a ceasefire in Gaza.
The strike on Tehran came shortly after Israel reported that it had hit Beirut, targeting Hezbollah commander Shukr. The IDF claimed Shukr was behind an attack on the Golan Heights at the weekend which killed 12 children. Hezbollah denied involvement in that earlier strike and blamed it on a projectile from Israel's own Iron Dome defence system which it said had been attempting to take down rocket fire directed at Israeli military installations.