Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday called for greater protections of Palestinian civilians caught in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas. Speaking at a news conference in Tel Aviv, Blinken said it was important that steps must be taken now to ensure a better tomorrow “for both peoples and the region.” As well as stressing the need to prevent the conflict escalating or spreading to other areas, Blinken said: “We need to do more to protect Palestinian civilians.” “We’ve been clear that, as Israel conducts this campaign to defeat Hamas, how it does so matters,” he added. “It matters because it’s the right and lawful thing to do. It matters because failure to do so plays into the hands of Hamas.” Blinken went on to say how he felt seeing images of Palestinian children being pulled from the rubble of destroyed buildings. “When I look into their eyes through the TV screen,” he said, “I see my own children.” In a statement of his own, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that Israel won’t agree to a ceasefire without the release of hostages, of which there are more than 200.