Antony Blinken arrives in Egypt to seek a “lasting end” to the war in Gaza

The head of diplomacy U.S, Anthony Blinkenarrived on Tuesday Egypt on a tour Middle East which seeks a new truce and a “durable finish“for the war between Israel It is Hamas in Link.

The diplomatic campaign gained greater urgency with the advance of Israeli forces towards Rafaa city on the border with Egypt where more than half of the city’s population takes refuge Gaza strip.

LOOK HERE: Netanyahu announces goal of killing Hamas leaders in Gaza that he does not control

The army “It will reach places where we have not yet fought (…) up to the last stronghold of Hamas, which is Rafah“, warned the Israeli Defense Minister on Monday, Yoav Galante.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks during a joint press conference with the US Secretary of Defense in Tel Aviv on December 18, 2023. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI/AFP) (ALBERTO PIZZOLI/)

On his fifth trip to the region since the start of the war almost four months ago, Blinken is expected to meet in Cairo with the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al Sisia day after meeting the Saudi crown prince Mohamed bin Salman in Riyadh.

The Secretary of State will then travel to Qatar already Israel in the hope of gathering support for a truce proposal forged in January in Paris, which has not yet been signed by either candidate.

Israeli troops, with naval and air support, fought intense urban fighting in the main city in southern Gaza, Jan Yunisbirthplace of the head of Hamas in this territory, Yahya Sinuar.

Israel considers Sinuar the mastermind of the attack Hamas of October 7th on Israeli soil, where 1,160 people died, most of them civilians, according to an AFP report based on official data.

The Islamic militants also kidnapped around 250 people. About a hundred people were released in a truce in November, but Israel believes 132 remain in Gaza, including 28 presumed dead, according to the prime minister’s office. Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presides over a cabinet meeting in Kirya, which houses the Israeli Ministry of Defense, in Tel Aviv on December 31, 2023. (Photo by ABIR SULTAN/POOL/AFP) (ABIR SULTAN /)

Israel’s retaliatory offensive killed 27,585 people in Gaza, most of them women and children, according to the latest report from the Hamas Ministry of Health, released on Tuesday.

“There is no safe place”

The Israeli military said on Tuesday that “Over the past day, dozens of terrorists were killed and approximately 80 individuals suspected of involvement in terrorist activities were captured, including terrorists who participated in the October 7 massacre.”.

He also noted that his snipers killed more than 15 militiamen and that a ship fired missiles at a “terrorist cell”.

MORE INFORMATION: There are 27,365 deaths in Gaza due to Israeli attacks after another 127 fatalities in the last 24 hours

An AFP journalist saw attacks on Khan Younis and Rafah.

“There is no safe place, none. Where should we go?”, he despaired Mohamad Kozaat after six members of his family, including his daughter, were injured in an Israeli bombing raid on this border town.

The body of a member of the Dardasawi family, killed during an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis, is transported out of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on January 6, 2024. (Photo EFE/EPA/HAITHAM IMAD) (HAITHAM IMAD/)

U.S It supported its Israeli ally with weapons and diplomatic support, but also urged it to protect the civilian population and negotiate the creation of a Palestinian state.

The proposal defended by Blinken includes a pause in fighting for six months, an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners and more humanitarian aid for Gaza, according to a Hamas source.

Netanyahu, caught between a part of his cabinet that demands firmness and the families of the hostages who want their release, said that Israel “will not accept”Hamas demands an exchange.

According to your party Likudthe prime minister said that the conditions of the exchange “They must be similar to those of the previous agreement”, which was based on a ratio of three Palestinian prisoners for every Israeli hostage.

Houthi attacks

In his meeting with Mohamed bin Salmán, Blinken defended “achieve a lasting end to the crisis in Gaza” and also highlighted “the urgent need to reduce regional tensions“said the State Department spokesperson, Matthew Miller.

Parallel to the war in Gaza, hostility soared in other countries in the region, such as Lebanon, Iraq, Syria any Yemenwhere Iranian-backed groups launched attacks in support of Hamas.

Houthi fighters brandish their weapons during a protest following attacks by American and British forces, in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa on January 12, 2024. (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP) (MOHAMMED HUWAIS/)

Israel, the United States and their allies responded to these attacks by bombing the positions of pro-Iran groups in these countries.

One of these objectives has been the rebels Yemen’s Houthiswho since November have launched actions against ships allegedly linked to Israel in the Red Sea it’s him gulf of aden.

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United States and UK On Sunday they carried out a new round of bombings against the positions Houthisthat this Tuesday took responsibility for the attacks on ships from these two countries.

The spokesman for this Iranian-backed group, Yahya Saree, I assert that “The first attack was directed against the American ship’Nasia Star‘, while another went to the British ship’Morning Tide‘”.

The maritime security company Ambrey confirmed a drone attack on a British-owned ship that suffered “minor damage to port”.

Source: Elcomercio