Top US diplomat in Turkey to allay Ankara's anger over Gaza
Turkey's president has blasted the West's hypocrisy for shedding "crocodile tears" over civilian deaths in Ukraine, while idly standing by as Israel devastates Gaza.
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00:00 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Iraq on Sunday.
00:06 He`s visiting regional partners pushing for a humanitarian pause in Gaza, but has had
00:11 a mixed reception.
00:14 We are working very hard to make sure that the conflict in Gaza does not escalate, does
00:18 not spread to other places, whether it`s here, whether it`s elsewhere in the region.
00:23 It`s important that as we are engaged in pursuing humanitarian pause, this can be something
00:29 that advances the prospect of getting the hostages back.
00:32 It can also advance other things that we are committed to doing.
00:35 Earlier, Blinken had held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.
00:40 The U.S. diplomat suggested Abbas could play a central role in any post-Hamas government
00:45 in Gaza.
00:46 Abbas reportedly said the Palestinian Authority would only assume power in Gaza, which Hamas
00:51 has controlled since 2007, as part of a comprehensive political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian
00:57 conflict.
00:58 But when Blinken arrived in Ankara on Sunday night, hoping for talks on Monday, he was
01:05 told Turkey`s President Erdogan would be out of town, visiting a remote part of the country.
01:10 The snub comes as Israel resists any pause in its offensive until all the hostages are
01:16 released.
01:17 America`s Gaza peace mission proving a hard sell for the U.S. Secretary of State.
01:22 (whooshing)
01:25 (whooshing)