Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Friday published a video message following his meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Tel Aviv.

“Today, I met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken,” Netanyahu said. “I told him that I very much appreciate that we’ve stood together in the war against Hamas for over five months. I also told him that we recognize the need to evacuate the civilian population from the combat areas and of course to also take care of humanitarian needs and we are working on that.”

“But I also said that we have no way of winning Hamas without entering Rafah and eliminating the remaining battalions there. And I told him that I hope that we’ll do it with the support of the US but if we need to – we’ll do it alone.”

Blinken told reporters before he departed from Israel that although the US shares Israel’s goal of eradicating Hamas, launching a “major military ground operation in Rafah is not the way to do it.”

Blinken asserted that if Israel launches the operation in Rafah, it “risks further isolating Israel around the world and jeopardizing its long-term security and standing.”

Former US ambassador to Israel David Friedman responded to Blinken’s comments by stating: “The only risk Israel bears of ‘further isolation’ is if the United States moves further away from Israel. Blinken isn’t offering friendly advice — he’s making a threat.”

Amid the tension between the US and Israel, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant left for Washington on Sunday at the invitation of his US counterpart Lloyd Austin.

Gallant is slated to hold meetings with Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and other senior officials.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)