State Department Spokesperson Pressed About Criticisms Of ‘Combatant Israel’ Controlling Aid To Gaza

Forbes Breaking News

During Thursday’s State Department press briefing, Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott answered questions about humanitarian aid flow to Gaza.

Transcript

00:00Take some questions. Yes.

00:02Hi, it's Ellen Nickmeyer with the AP.

00:05Did the Trump administration on its Gulf trip raise the detentions of rights activists in Saudi Arabia?

00:16Did it ask for American citizens and American residents in Saudi Arabia to be able,

00:25allowed, free from travel bans and allowed to return home?

00:28And did it raise, relatedly, the issue of alleged UAE support to the RSF during the UAE stop?

00:44And separately, in a...

00:46Let me just address some of that.

00:47There's a lot there already to unpack.

00:49I'm not going to discuss private diplomatic conversations,

00:52but what I can say is that when U.S. citizens have raised the challenges they experience with exit bans,

00:57we have provided consular assistance and worked to ensure they receive fair and transparent treatment.

01:02That's what I have to offer there.

01:04When it comes to, again, I'm not going to talk about private diplomatic conversations,

01:09but when it comes to those reports, we have heard of those reports when it comes to the RSF.

01:14Both the RSF and Sudanese Armed Forces have used weapons acquired from foreign actors against the civilian population

01:19and have committed human rights violations and abuses.

01:22Supplying arms to any of the belligerents prolongs the conflict

01:25and heightens the risk of further destabilization of Sudan and the region.

01:29The United States calls for an end to all external support to the warring parties

01:32and urges all our partners to press for a comprehensive cessation of hostilities

01:36and increased humanitarian access.

01:38I've got a second question, but I'll observe that the U.S. actually has sanctions on the UAE for UAE companies

01:47for support to the RSF.

01:50And separately, there's progress on the Gaza Humanitarian Fund says there's,

01:57Foundation says it's making progress with Israel on resuming aid in Gaza.

02:03Can you address, you know, explain what the U.S. role in that is?

02:08The U.S. government role, but what funding or support it's going to give,

02:13and if it's concerned by humanitarian groups' criticism that this violates humanitarian law

02:21by allowing a combatant Israel to control aid delivery to civilians?

02:28Well, look, one of the fundamental principles of this plan is that it is independent,

02:32meant to get humanitarian aid into Gaza.

02:34And we welcome the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's official launch yesterday.

02:38The Secretary also just spoke to this as well.

02:40We have seen what has happened in Gaza because of the hostilities that Hamas bears sole responsibility for.

02:47We have seen this announcement.

02:49We welcome creative solutions to get aid in there.

02:51But as the Secretary also just said, we need to see aid enter Gaza in a way that does not allow Hamas

02:57or other terrorists to take that aid.

02:59So we welcome this creative solution.

03:02We welcome the Foundation's announcement.

03:04I refer you to the Foundation itself for further details on this program.

03:08Good night.

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