US Secretary of State Marco Rubio charged Monday that Hamas was emboldened by moves by Britain, France and other US allies to recognise a Palestinian state.
"They're largely symbolic -- they have really no impact whatsoever about bringing us any closer to a Palestinian state. The only impact they actually have is it makes Hamas feel more emboldened," Rubio said at a joint news conference in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"It's actually served as an impediment to peace," Rubio said.
Rubio said that at times in the past, Hamas "walked away from agreements that they actually had tacitly agreed to, but then they see the sort of international support they believe they're getting".
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He said he will keep raising concerns directly to US allies as he was asked about his message to Britain, which he will visit starting Tuesday with President Donald Trump.
"It's actually hurting the cause they think they're furthering," Rubio said.
Rubio was visiting Jerusalem a week before a UN summit in New York on recognising a Palestinian state led by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has voiced exasperation at Israel's nearly two-year offensive in Gaza and sought to strengthen Hamas's rivals in the Palestinian Authority.
US supports Qatar’s role in Gaza talks, Rubio tells Israel
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Israel on Monday that the United States backed the "constructive role" by Qatar in mediating in Gaza, after an Israeli strike on the Gulf state against Hamas.
President Donald Trump and Rubio have both said they opposed the attack last week on Qatar, which is home to the largest US air base in the Middle East.
Asked what he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Rubio said, "We are focused on what happens now, what happens next, what role can Qatar play possibly in reaching an outcome" to end the Gaza war.
"We're going to continue to encourage Qatar to play a constructive role in that regard," Rubio told a joint news conference with Netanyahu.
Netanyahu defended the Israeli strike against Hamas, which carried out the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
"We assume full responsibility for it because we believe that terrorists should not be given a haven and the people who planned the worst massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust cannot have immunity," Netanyahu said.
He compared the strike to how the US military acted "very boldly" after the September 11, 2001, with its war on Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and the 2011 raid into Pakistan that killed attack mastermind Osama bin Laden.
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"Those countries that are condemning Israel today did not come and say, well, what a terrible thing was done, the sovereignty of Pakistan was violated, the sovereignty of Afghanistan was violated," Netanyahu said.
"You don't have such a sovereignty when you are effectively giving a base to terrorists," he said.
Before the October 7 attack, Israel as well as the United States reportedly had quietly encouraged Qatar's role including its transfer of millions of dollars to Hamas in hopes of maintaining stability in Gaza.
Israel and the United States also viewed Qatar, with its close relationship with Washington, as a better place to keep an eye on Hamas and prevent the militants from basing themselves in Iran, whose clerical state openly backs the group.
A prestigious UK government-run defence studies institute will not accept Israeli post-graduates from September 2026 over the Gaza war, the defence ministry said Monday.
UK defence academy to bar Israelis over Gaza war
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed to AFP that enrolment for Israelis at the Royal College of Defence Studies would be paused next year, but current students would be allowed to remain.
The post-graduate college part of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom offers training for "strategic thinkers and leaders within the armed forces and civil service", according to its website, with international students allowed to study specific courses.
"UK military educational courses have long been open to personnel from a wide range of countries, with all UK military courses emphasising compliance with international humanitarian law," an MoD spokesperson said.
"However, the Israeli government's decision to further escalate its military operation in Gaza is wrong," the spokesperson said, calling for an "immediate ceasefire".
A UK defence ministry official told parliament in June that the college was providing "non-combat academic courses" to "fewer than five" members of the Israeli military.
Amir Baram, the director general of Israel's defence ministry, who studied at the college, denounced the decision as a "discriminatory act" and "disloyalty to an ally at war".
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