As Israel escalates its attacks on Gaza, the State Department is discouraging diplomats working on Middle East issues from making public statements suggesting the U.S. wants to see less violence, according to a report published on HuffPost.
In emails cited by HuffPost, State Department staff wrote that high-level officials do not want press materials to include three specific phrases: “de-escalation/ceasefire,” “end to violence/bloodshed” and “restoring calm.”
The messages were reportedly sent in the hours after Israel warned residents of northern Gaza that they should leave the area ahead of an expected ground invasion of the region.
U.S. officials have said they expect Israel to abide by the laws of war in its operation against Hamas, but they have avoided discussion of a ceasefire, the HuffPost report noted. Earlier this week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken deleted and replaced a post on X, the former Twitter, in which he mentioned Turkey’s calls for a ceasefire.
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