Donald Trump’s top diplomat has arrived in the Middle East amid tensions over Israel’s attack on Hamas inside Qatar that has upended efforts to broker an end to the Gaza war.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio and his wife Jeanette Dousdebes Rubio touched down in Israel on Sunday, having earlier told reporters that the president was “not happy” with the Israeli strike.
Although the US relationship with Israel remains unaffected, Mr Rubio said he will be seeking answers from Israeli officials about how they see a way forward in Gaza following the attack.
He said: “There are still 48 hostages that deserve to be released immediately, all at once. And there is still the hard work ahead once this ends, of rebuilding Gaza in a way that provides people the quality of life that they all want.”
Mr Rubio said it had yet to be determined who would do that, who would pay for it and who would be in charge of the process.
His visit comes days after Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with an airstrike on the capital Doha.
The group had gathered to consider a US proposal for a ceasefire in the nearly two-year-old war in Gaza.
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Hamas has said its top leaders survived the strike, but five members were killed, including the son of its exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator Khalil al Hayya.
US officials described the assault as a unilateral escalation that did not serve American or Israeli interests.
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The strike on the territory of a close US ally sparked widespread condemnation from other Arab states and derailed ceasefire and hostage talks brokered by Qatar.
Mr Rubio will attend meetings in Jerusalem on Sunday and Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others.
After that, he is expected to join Mr Trump’s state visit to the UK next week.
Qatar will host an emergency Arab-Islamic summit on Sunday and Monday in response to the Israeli attack and is expected to issue a clear condemnation of the assault.
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Meantime, a barrage of Israeli airstrikes on Saturday reportedly killed at least 32 people across Gaza City, while further action on Sunday allegedly killed 13 Palestinians.
According to the morgue at Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were brought on Saturday, the dead included 12 children.
Health officials said one of the strikes killed a family of 10, including a mother and her three children.
The Palestinian Football Association said a player for the Al-Helal Sporting Club, Mohammed Ramez Sultan, was killed with 14 members of his family.
On Sunday, local hospitals reported 13 people dead and dozens wounded in multiple Israeli strikes across Gaza.
The action comes amid intensified strikes across Gaza City in recent days, which has seen multiple high-rise buildings flattened and Israel accusing Hamas of putting surveillance equipment in them.
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As part of its expanding operation in Gaza City, the Israeli military destroyed a high-rise residential building on Sunday morning, less than an hour after an evacuation order posted online by the military spokesman Avichay Adraee.
Residents said said the Kauther tower in the Rimal neighbourhood was flattened to the ground. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Meanwhile, it is understood the first group of ill or injured Palestinian children set to receive NHS treatment have been evacuated from Gaza and will shortly arrive in the UK.
They are the first children to be brought to Britain for treatment as part of a government operation being coordinated by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Home Office and Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
A government spokesperson said: “As announced by the prime minister on 25 July, the UK is medically evacuating Gazan children for treatment in the UK.
“This support comes as the humanitarian situation continues to leave many in urgent need of medical care, with most hospitals in Gaza no longer functioning and essential medical supplies running out.
“We expect the children and their immediate family members to arrive in the UK in the coming weeks. For operational security reasons, we will not confirm details of any medical evacuation flights.”
A small number of Palestinian children were earlier brought to the UK for private medical treatment with the help of charity Project Pure Hope.
