US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Egypt on Wednesday to advance efforts for a ceasefire deal in Gaza and strengthen bilateral ties. The visit comes amidst escalating tensions in the Middle East, with concerns over a potential expansion of the conflict following Hezbollah's vow to retaliate against Israel after an explosion in Lebanon.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hopes to advance efforts to achieve a ceasefire deal in Gaza as well as strengthen bilateral ties with Cairo when he visits Egypt on Wednesday amid concern about escalating Middle East tensions. The top US diplomat’s visit comes as the region remains on high alert due to risk of Gaza war expanding, particularly after militant group Hezbollah promised to retaliate against Israel , accusing it of detonating pagers across Lebanon on Tuesday .
In Blinken’s meetings with Egyptian officials, “squarely on the agenda is how we get a proposal that we think would secure agreement from both parties” to an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, Miller said. US officials have for weeks said a new proposal would be presented soon for a deal including the release of hostages taken from Israel by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
Blinken Egypt Ceasefire Gaza Hezbollah Israel Middle East Tensions
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