By Daphne Psaledakis
CAIRO (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will arrive in Cairo on Monday at a critical time as Washington looks to increase pressure on Hamas and Israel to reach and ensure a ceasefire in Gaza that the war does not spread to Lebanon.
On his eighth visit to the region since Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, triggering the bloodiest episode in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the top US diplomat will also travel to Israel, Jordan and Qatar this week.
US President Joe Biden on May 31 outlined a proposal for a three-phase ceasefire by Israel that would include a permanent end to hostilities, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the reconstruction of Gaza.
According to Israeli figures, the Hamas attack killed 1,200 people and took about 250 others hostage. In response, Israel launched a brutal attack on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 37,000 Palestinians, the Health Ministry in the Hamas-held territory said in its update on Sunday, reducing the enclave to a wasteland.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Israeli forces rescued four hostages held by Hamas since October during a raid on Gaza that killed 274 Palestinians.
Blinken’s trip comes as Israeli minister Bennie Gantz announced his resignation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s emergency government on Sunday, withdrawing the only centrist force in the embattled leader’s otherwise far-right coalition during the Gaza war.
The departure of Gantz’s centrist party will not pose an immediate threat to the government. But it could nevertheless have a serious impact, leaving Netanyahu dependent on hardliners, with no end in sight to the war and a possible escalation of the battle with Lebanese Hezbollah.
Blinken has previously met Gantz during visits to Israel.
The conflict between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah is in a dangerous balance after more than eight months of fighting following the Gaza war, with hostilities escalating and both sides signaling readiness for greater confrontation.
Blinken will discuss with partners during the trip this week the need to reach a ceasefire agreement that would guarantee the release of all hostages, as well as the need to prevent the conflict from escalating further, said spokesman Matthew Miller of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement on Friday.
He will emphasize the importance of Hamas accepting the proposal on the table, Miller added.
US officials say Israel will likely accept it since it is an Israeli plan. Qatar has said Israel must give a clear position on the plan representing the entire government, parts of which have opposed any form of ceasefire.
Hamas has said it favors the contents of the proposed plan and has criticized Washington for what it described as attempts to blame the Palestinian militant group for obstructing it.
Ceasefire talks have intensified since Biden’s speech and CIA Director William Burns met senior officials from mediators Qatar and Egypt in Doha on Wednesday to discuss the plan.
Biden has repeatedly declared a ceasefire in recent months, but there was only one weeklong truce, in November.
(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis in Cairo and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
