U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on his sixth visit to the Middle East since the start of Israel’s war on Hamas in October. The aim of his visit is to advance a deal that would secure a temporary ceasefire while pushing for the release of hostages held by the Hamas terrorist group.
During his visit, Mr. Bliken is set to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman and the Saudi foreign minister in Jeddah.
According to a statement by State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, the talks, which are brokered by Egypt and Qatar, will focus on reaching an agreement between nations and furthering attempts to send more aid to Gaza.
According to an Egyptian diplomat, per PBS, the State Secretary will then move on to meet with Egyptian officials in Cairo on March 21, and a six-member Arab committee comprised of the foreign ministers of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Morocco, and the Palestinian Authority.
According to Mr. Blinken, one element to be included in the talks is the systematic restructuring and redevelopment of post-conflict Gaza, with a focus on securing new governance in the region that would ensure security and safety for its population.
“We’ve been doing a lot of work since January, particularly with our Arab partners, and we’ll be pursuing those conversations, as well as discussing what is the right architecture for lasting regional peace,” Mr. Blinken said at a news conference during at a previous stop in Manila.
While ceasefire talks are set to resume this week in Qatar, several previous weeks of intense negotiations have not yielded any results, and an agreement between Israel and Hamas does currently not appear on the horizon.
Meanwhile, Washington is hopeful that further negotiations will aid in alleviating the ongoing humanitarian crisis that has been unfolding in Gaza for several months and stop further exacerbation of the situation amid the deadlock.
Israel’s war on Hamas started after Hamas terrorists crossed into Israel on Oct. 7 last year, killing more than a thousand people in a brutal massacre during a music festival. Since then, Israel has retaliated in an effort to vanquish and destroy Hamas and eliminate the terrorist group’s presence in the region.
Thousands of Gazan citizens were killed in the process, by what Israel says, is largely the result of Hamas using its own people as human shields. In addition, tens of thousands of Gaza’s population have been displaced since Israel launched its counter-offensive.
More than 250 Israelis were taken hostage by the terrorist group, of which more than 100 remain in captivity, according to Israeli tallies.
The State Secretary’s visit comes amid rising tensions between the Biden administration and Israel’s government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“In Israel, Secretary Blinken will discuss with the leadership of the government of Israel the ongoing negotiations to secure the release of all hostages. He will discuss the need to ensure the defeat of Hamas, including in Rafah, in a way that protects the civilian population, does not hinder the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and advances Israel’s overall security,” according to the statement by the State Department.
Earlier this week, Mr. Netanyahu rejected a plea by President Biden to call off a planned ground attack in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza. The area is reportedly sheltering more than a million displaced Palestinians.
Reuters contributed to this article
