US secretary of state, who is visiting Jerusalem, warns of ‘Israeli counter reaction’ if allies recognise Palestine
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has put the Trump administration’s full support behind Benjamin Netanyahu in a visit to Jerusalem, saying Washington’s priorities were the liberation of Israeli hostages and the destruction of Hamas.
In public remarks standing alongside Netanyahu, Rubio did not mention the possibility of a ceasefire, and did not repeat his earlier criticism of Israel for carrying out an airstrike last week aimed at Hamas leaders in Doha, the capital of another close US ally, Qatar.
The state department announced that Rubio would make a stop in Doha on Tuesday on his way to London, as the Trump administration seeks to limit the damage to US relations in the Gulf caused by the Israeli strike last Tuesday.
At an emergency Arab and Islamic summit in Doha, Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, said Israel’s aim in carrying out the strike was to derail talks aimed at a ceasefire. “Whoever works diligently and systematically to assassinate the party with whom he is negotiating, intends to thwart the negotiations,” he told fellow leaders.
