antony blinken

Blinken Slams Israel’s Rafah Offensive, Hamas Blames Biden

A full-scale Israeli offensive in Rafah would cause "chaos" without eliminating Hamas, warned US diplomatic chief Antony Blinken on Sunday. For its part, Hamas described US President Joe Biden's statements on the hostages the previous day as "a setback" for truce negotiations. An all-out Israeli offensive on the Gaza city of Rafah would provoke ...

Washington Blocks Arms Shipment to Israel

The Biden administration suspended a shipment of US-made munitions to Israel last week, two Israeli officials told the US media outlet Axios on Sunday, May 5. This is the first time Washington has blocked an arms shipment to Tel Aviv since the start of the conflict. A few days earlier, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had told Netanyahu that ...

Blinken Calls on Hamas to Accept Ceasefire Proposal

US top diplomat Antony Blinken urged Hamas on Wednesday to accept a Gaza truce plan, despite an Israeli warning that the army will keep fighting the Palestinian militant group after any ceasefire. "Hamas needs to say yes and needs to get this done," said Blinken, who was in Israel on his seventh Middle East crisis tour since the war broke out in ...

Blinken Determined to Get Ceasefire Now in Latest Israel Visit

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken renewed calls for Hamas to accept a ceasefire deal Wednesday as he started talks with Israel's leadership. "Even in these very difficult times we are determined to get a ceasefire that brings the hostages home -- and to get it now. And the only reason that it wouldn't be achieved is because of Hamas," Blinken ...

Netanyahu Threatens With Rafah Offensive Regardless of Deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Tuesday that the military would launch a ground offensive on Gaza's far-southern Rafah city "with or without" a truce deal being negotiated with Hamas. He issued the warning despite strong concerns raised by top ally Washington and hours before the arrival of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ...

Saudi Arabia to Normalize Relations With Israel

Saudi Arabia has opted to normalize its relations with Israel, according to a foreign diplomat familiar with the situation. However, the kingdom is deliberating whether to enact this decision in the weeks ahead, or postpone it until after the United States presidential elections in November. Saudi Arabia has decided to normalize relations with ...

Hamas in Cairo for Truce Talks, As Diplomatic Efforts Intensify

A Hamas delegation will arrive in Cairo on Monday, for the latest round of Gaza negotiations as diplomatic efforts intensify with Blinken's latest visit and Hamas and Israeli concessions. A Hamas delegation is due Monday in Egypt, where it will respond to Israel's latest proposal for a long-sought truce in Gaza and hostage release after almost ...

Blinken Calls for Gulf Defence Integration in Latest Visit

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Monday for tighter defence integration among Gulf Arabs in response to Iran, part of efforts to encourage moderation by Israel by dangling the prospect of better ties with the region. Blinken was starting his seventh visit to the Middle East since October 7, in the context of growing public pressure for ...

Xi Tells Blinken, We Should Be "Partners, Not Rivals"

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday told top US diplomat Antony Blinken that the world's biggest economies should be "partners, not rivals" as the two sides pressed for headway on a range of concerns. Blinken, in China for the second time in less than a year, pointed to improvements in the relationship but urged greater action from Beijing on ...

Blinken Calls for US and China to Manage Differences

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a visit to Shanghai ahead of crucial talks with Chinese officials, emphasized the need for "direct and sustained" dialogue between the two countries. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a visit to Shanghai ahead of crucial talks with Chinese officials, emphasized the need for "direct and sustained" ...

US Hints at Sanctioning Israeli Unit Over Alleged Abuses

Washington could impose sanctions on an Israeli Army unit for possible abuses committed against Palestinians in the West Bank prior to the October 7 Hamas attack, said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday. The United States appears close to sanctioning an Israeli military unit over alleged human rights violations in the West Bank, a ...

Blinken to Return to China with Message on Russia Support

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will make his second visit to China in less than a year next week, with Chinese support for Russia against Ukraine expected to be the main topic. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will pay his second visit in less than a year to China next week, hoping to use easing tension to press Beijing to curb wartime ...