WASHINGTON, April  9, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
said Tuesday he doubted Israel would attack Rafah before new talks next week in
Washington, which has raised concerns over an assault on the packed Gaza city.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that a date was set for a
ground offensive in Rafah, vowing to go ahead to root out Hamas despite
international concerns over 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in the city.

Blinken said that Israel has not communicated a date for an operation to
the United States and that an Israeli delegation would visit Washington next
week to hear US concerns.

"I don't anticipate any actions being taken before those talks; for that
matter, I don't see anything imminent," Blinken told a joint news conference
with British Foreign Secretary David Cameron.

The United States will again make the case that major military operations
in Rafah would be "extremely dangerous for civilians who have been caught in
harm's way," Blinken said.