Where is the 'outrage' at Hamas? Emotional Antony Blinken asks why the world's anger is now directed at Israel and there's 'deafening silence' on October 7 as he reveals the U.S. still doesn't know Netanyahu's Rafah plans

Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivered an emotional rebuke to critics of Israeli and U.S. foreign policy, asking why their outrage was not directed at Hamas and the architects of the shocking Oct. 7 terrorist attack.

World opinion has hardened against Israel for its siege of Gaza and the death of more than 33,000 Palestinians.

At the same time the Biden administration is under increasing pressure to end arms sales to its biggest Middle Eastern ally and rein in the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as famine looms in the Palestinian enclave.

Asked Tuesday about why it took the death of foreign aid workers rather than thousands of Palestinians, local aid workers and journalists to trigger an expression of outrage and a tougher line from President Joe Biden, Blinken vented his obvious frustration.

'It remains astounding to me that the world is almost deafeningly silent when it comes to Hamas,' he told journalists at the State Department.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivered his comments at a press conference alongside British Foreign Secretary David Cameron after their meeting on Tuesday morning 

Blinken delivered an emotional rebuke to critics of Israeli and U.S. foreign policy, asking why their outrage was not directed at Hamas and the architects of the shocking Oct. 7 attack

'We would not be where we are had Hamas not chosen to engage in one of the most horrific acts of brutality and terrorism on October 7. 

'And had they then, having done that, not refused these many, many months to get out of the way of civilians, to stop hiding behind them, to put down their arms ... to surrender. Where's the outrage there?'

His words were more explicit and emotional, but officials have frequently used a similar strategy to deflect questions about Israeli behavior by answering with details of Hamas barbarity when gunmen killed 1200 people on Oct. 7. 

Last week, seven aid workers—including an American and three Britons—were killed by an Israeli airstrike.

The result was an immediate change in tack by the White House. A spokesman condemned the killings and Biden, in a call to Netanyahu, demanded a ceasefire and hinted at a future shift in U.S. support for Israel.

He demanded immediate action to ease the humanitarian crisis.

In the meantime, officials have repeatedly warned Israel not to launch an operation in Rafah, Gaza's last refuge for families fleeing the bombardment, and has asked to see a plan for how Israel will minimize civilian casualties.

A day earlier, Netanyahu said he had a date for the operation to start.

On Tuesday, Blinken said American officials remained in the dark about a timeline. 

Two men sit in a donkey-drawn cart moving past the rubble of a destroyed building in Khan Yunis on April 7, 2024 after Israel pulled its ground forces out of the southern Gaza Strip, six months into the devastating war sparked by the October 7 attacks

Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint along the border with Gaza in southern Israel

'On the contrary, what we have is an ongoing conversation with Israel about any Rafah operation,' he said.

Talks, he added, were expected to continue next week. 

'I don't anticipate any actions being taken before those talks, and for that matter I don't see anything imminent. But there's a lot of work to be done and it remains our conviction that major military operations in Rafah would be extremely dangerous for civilians who would be caught in harm's way,' he said.

At the same time, talks are under way in Cairo to try to find a way out of the devastating war.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators are trying to secure a deal that would bring home the hostages held by Hamas. The terrorist group wants an agreement that would end the Israeli offensive.