“A very, very detailed, very blunt, very open conversation.”
That’s how Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi described yesterday’s meetings in Amman between Arab foreign ministers and the US’s top diplomat Antony Blinken, which saw Arab states calling for an immediate ceasefire – instead of the humanitarian pauses now being pushed by Washington.
He told me Israel’s linkage of humanitarian pauses to movement on the release of hostages was “totally unacceptable”.
He said all Arab states were calling for the release of civilians, but he accused Israel of “taking 2.3 million Palestinians hostage” by denying them essential services and destroying their homes.
Last week, Jordan recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv, the first Arab state to take this step.
“Everything is on the table,” he replied when I asked whether Jordan’s peace treaty with Israel could be at risk.
But, he added, “unlike the Israeli government we are not acting out of pure rage…and are not losing sight of the broader picture”.
