ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) -U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that Washington does not view a strike that Israel said targeted a member of a Palestinian militant group in Gaza as a violation of a U.S.-backed ceasefire.
Israel said it struck a member of the Islamic Jihad group on Saturday, accusing the individual of planning to attack Israeli troops. Islamic Jihad denied it was planning an attack.
Speaking aboard President Donald Trump’s plane during a trip to Asia, Rubio said: “We don’t view that as a violation of the ceasefire.”
The U.S. top diplomat added that Israel has not surrendered its right to self-defense as part of the agreement brokered by Washington, Egypt and Qatar that saw the main militant faction in Gaza, Hamas, release the remaining living hostages held in Gaza this month.
“They have the right if there’s an imminent threat to Israel, and all the mediators agree with that,” Rubio said.
Rubio said the ceasefire in Gaza, which remains in force between Israel and Hamas just over two years since the war began, was based on obligations on both sides, reiterating that Hamas needs to speed up the return of the remains of hostages who died in captivity.
Israel’s Saturday strike came shortly after Rubio departed Israel after a visit aimed at shoring up the ceasefire.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; writing by Simon Lewis; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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