Cairo (AFP) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday in Cairo that a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza would be the best way to stop violence from spreading in the Middle East. This marks Blinken’s 10th trip to the region since the start of the war that was sparked by Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel. His visit aimed to salvage stalled negotiations mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to end the conflict. No other regional stops, including Israel, were on his itinerary.
“We discussed the importance of getting this deal across the finish line, something we’ll continue to pursue with our Qatari counterparts,” Blinken told journalists in a joint press conference alongside Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty. “We all know that a ceasefire is the best chance to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, to address risks to regional stability,” he added. Following the meeting with Blinken, Sisi’s office said the pair discussed “ways to intensify joint efforts between Egypt, the US, and Qatar to make progress on ceasefire negotiations and the exchange of hostages and detainees.” Sisi also called for “decisive intervention to remove obstacles to the entry of huge amounts of aid” to Gaza and “ending Israeli violations in the West Bank,” it said.
Violence has surged in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the war broke out in Gaza, with Israel conducting large-scale raids in recent weeks.
Blinken arrived in Cairo hours after hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded almost simultaneously across Lebanon on Tuesday, killing 12 people and wounding more than 2,750 others. Blinken denied reports that the United States had prior knowledge or involvement in the attack, which Hezbollah has blamed on Israel, the key US ally. Israel has yet to comment on the blasts.
“With regard to Lebanon, the United States did not know about, nor was it involved in these incidents, and we’re still gathering information and gathering the facts,” he said in Cairo. “Broadly speaking, we’ve been very clear and we remain very clear about the importance of all parties avoiding any steps that could further escalate the conflict.”
US news site Axios reported that minutes before the attack, Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called his US counterpart Lloyd Austin and informed him of an imminent operation in Lebanon, without giving any details. After months of clashes along its northern border with Lebanon, Israel on Tuesday said it was broadening the aims of the war against Hamas to include its fight against Hezbollah.
While in Cairo, Blinken also discussed strengthening US-Egyptian relations. Egypt is frequently accused of human rights abuses but remains a strategic US partner, and last week Washington decided to release $1.3 billion of military aid without attaching rights conditions, unlike in 2023. After Cairo, Blinken is due to head to Paris to brief his French, British, and Italian counterparts.
© 2024 AFP
