Washington: US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that widespread criticism of his efforts to win a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas do not worry him and said he will continue to work toward that goal because Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked him to.
“I have taken hits before in politics, I am not worried about it,” he told reporters at the State Department. “This is not about me.”
Kerry said he is convinced that a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, followed by negotiations to resolve the underlying causes of the conflict, is “more appropriate” than continuing to wage war.
“I am not going to worry about personal attacks,” he said, adding that he and President Barack Obama are convinced “it is more appropriate to try to resolve the underlying issues at a negotiating table than to continue a tit-for-tat of violence that will invite more violence and perhaps a greater downward spiral which would be much more difficult to recover from.”
Kerry has come under harsh criticism in Israel and among its supporters for pushing a ceasefire last week that critics believe will hurt the security of Israel and give legitimacy to the militant Hamas movement that controls Gaza. On Monday, several senior Obama administration officials defended Kerry’s efforts as those of a true friend to Israel.
Though he said he wasn’t “worried” by the criticism, Kerry showed flashes of anger in his comments, noting at one point that he had a 100-per cent pro-Israel voting record in the Senate and would not “take a second seat to anybody” in his devotion to Israel’s security. While pro-Israeli Americans criticised Kerry for not being pro-Israeli enough, many social media users pointed out how despite the US overwhelming support for Israel, their ally is never satisfied. Adding to a long list of celebrities tweeting their support for Gaza, Grammy Award-winning R&B singer John Legend tweeted, “So sick watching our Secretary of State have to grovel so hard to tell Israel how much he loves them, while Israeli cabinet s**** on him.”
