The latest trip is Antony Blinken’s 11th visit to the region since October 7 last year.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Tuesday, the first stop of yet another Middle East tour aimed at ending the war in Gaza.
On his 11th trip to the region since October 7 last year, Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Blinken was expected to discuss the attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, as well as Tel Aviv’s potential response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack on Israel.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel. pic.twitter.com/RwGetdbTXJ
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 22, 2024
Blinken’s tour, from October 21 to 25, will “reaffirm U.S. commitment to enduring peace and security in the region,” according to a State Department official cited by the Anadolu news agency.
He will “discuss ending the war in Gaza, the release of hostages, and the urgent need for humanitarian aid delivery to help civilians in Gaza.”
Mediation Efforts
Blinken said on X: “On my way to Israel and other stops in the Middle East for intensive discussions about the importance of ending the war in Gaza, returning the hostages to their families, and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people.”
Last month it emerged in a report by the ProPublica news outlet that Blinken disregarded assessments from two “foremost authorities” that Israel had deliberately blocked deliveries of food and medicine into Gaza, suggesting he presented a misleading report to Congress.
On my way to Israel and other stops in the Middle East for intensive discussions about the importance of ending the war in Gaza, returning the hostages to their families, and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people. pic.twitter.com/lIaRUo7Ea2
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) October 21, 2024
The week-long trip is said to include a stop in Jordan and Doha as well.
Mediation efforts led by the US, Egypt and Qatar have so far yielded no results, but Washington maintains that Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar last week may lead to a breakthrough in talks.
Hamas, however, says the conflict will end when Israel stops its military campaign in the besieged enclave, which has killed more than 42,600 people since last October.
Ongoing Genocide
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
Blinken Rejected US Assessments that Israel Blocked Aid to Gaza – Report
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 42,603 Palestinians have been killed, and 99,795 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(PC, Anadolu)
