U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to the Middle East next week, the U.S. State Department said on Friday, as Washington tries to put pressure on Israel and Hamas to accept a ceasefire proposal that President Joe Biden laid out last week.
Blinken’s visit comes after Biden laid out a fresh ceasefire plan to end the eight month-long war and at a time when tensions between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah has escalated in recent days, with both sides signaling a readiness for a bigger confrontation. “The Secretary will also continue to reiterate the need to prevent the conflict from escalating further,” it added.
The Israel-Hamas war began when Hamas-led Palestinian fighters attacked southern Israel from Gaza, killing more than 1,200 people, and seizing more than 250 as hostages, according to Israeli tallies.