IRIA News

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to Israel on October 16, 2023, after completing his intense trip around the Middle East as he engaged with Arab leadership. U.S.’s top diplomat arrived in the region on October 11, seeking to prevent the escalation of the Israel-Hamas war into a regional conflict.

Blinken arrived at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport for a second meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister in the last four days. During his first visit, the U.S. Secretary of State reaffirmed Washington’s solidarity with the State of Israel as Tel Aviv went under attack by Hamas.

The crisis has unfolded further since Blinken’s last trip to Israel, as Israeli forces are carrying out intense retaliation against Palestinians of Gaza. Israel has been carrying out intense bombing and aerial strikes in the Gaza Strip resulting in thousands of deaths and leaving millions of people without homes.

When the U.S. Secretary of State left Washington on October 11, he was set to meet the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian Authority to initiate mediation. However, Blinken extended his trip later to engage with the Arab leadership, particularly the U.S. allies in the Middle East, who have shown evident concerns over Israel’s actions.

Returned to Israel and met with Israeli President @Isaac_Herzog to reaffirm U.S. commitment to provide Israel with the assistance it needs to protect its citizens. pic.twitter.com/RN1qZdLkLK

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) October 16, 2023

Meeting with the President of the Palestinian Authority in Jordan

After concluding his first trip to Israel, Blinken flew to Jordan where he was scheduled to meet with the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The meeting took place in the Jordanian capital, Amman, on October 13.

According to the State Department press release, “The Secretary reiterated the United States’ unequivocal condemnation of the abhorrent terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel.  The Secretary also detailed U.S. efforts to coordinate with partners to prevent the conflict from widening.”

Uneasy meetings with the US allies

Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt were on the list of destinations for the U.S.’s top diplomat as he concluded his meeting with the Israeli leader in Tel Aviv on October 12.

Blinken was faced with an unwelcoming attitude and stiff resistance from the Arab leadership. Leaders of Saudi Arabia and Egypt, two of the strongest U.S. allies in the region, proclaimed their resistance to Israel’s actions in Gaza and the U.S.’s support for it.

Blinken was faced with strong opposition in Riyadh where he went to meet with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi ruler kept Blinken waiting for hours for a meeting that was supposed to happen on the evening of October 14. The meeting eventually started on the next morning.

Contrary to the U.S. policy, which has been supporting Israel to continue its operation in Gaza for the eradication of Hamas, the crown prince called for an immediate halt in the “current escalation” in the conflict.

Mohammed bin Salman “stressed” the need to stop the military operations “that claimed the lives of innocent people”, a reference to Israel’s offensive, and lift the “siege of Gaza” that has left the Palestinian territory without water, electricity or fuel, according to the Saudi summary of the meeting.

Blinken downplayed his staunch personal support for the State of Israel as he met with the Egyptian leader. Speaking in Cairo after meeting with Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, Blinken cautioned that “the way that Israel does these matters. It needs to do it in a way that affirms the shared values that we have for human life and human dignity, taking every possible precaution to avoid harming civilians.”

“Mr. Secretary, you spoke about the crisis and you spoke as a Jewish person, and let me tell you that I am an Egyptian citizen, and I was born and brought up in a neighborhood where we had Jewish neighbors. And Jews who used to live here in Egypt not ever suffered from oppression and persecution,” Al-Sisi said as he referred to Blinken’s remarks that he made in Israel about being there as a Jewish support.

“I come first and foremost as a human being, a human being like so many others appalled at the atrocities committed by Hamas,” Blinken replied.

Egypt reopens border crossing to Gaza for aid

While speaking after meeting with the Egyptian President, Blinken said that the U.S. was in talks with the Egyptian authorities to reopen the border crossing into Gaza so aid and support could be sent to the war-torn city.

Hundreds of tons of aid from several countries have been waiting in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula for days pending a deal for its safe delivery to Gaza and the evacuation of some foreign passport holders through the Rafah crossing.

“We have put in place, Egypt has put in place a lot of material support for people in Gaza, and Rafah will be reopened,” Blinken told reporters in Cairo. During the meeting, Sisi also proposed hosting a summit to discuss the crisis, according to a statement released by the Egyptian government.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the U.S. Secretary of State that the Palestinian people have rejected the evacuation ordered by the Israeli forces. He said that such an event would constitute a “second Nakba,” referring to the mass displacement of Palestinians in the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation.

Blinken also met Jordan’s King Abdullah II to discuss the ongoing situation in the region. King Abdullah called for “opening humanitarian corridors to allow for the entry of urgent medical and relief aid to Gaza, and protecting civilians and stopping the escalation and war on Gaza.”

Jordan and other Arab leadership are worried that a regional wave of violence arising from the Israel-Hamas war could have repercussions in the neighboring countries where a large percentage of the Palestinian population resides.

Stopovers in Bahrain, Qatar, and UAE

Blinken made quick stopovers in Bahrain Qatar and UAE to meet their leaders. In Qatar, he met Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. In Bahrain, he met with Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa to discuss the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.

The U.S. secretary of state also discussed regional stability and security with the leaders of Bahrain and Qatar and agreed to work to prevent the conflict from spreading.

Blinken also met with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. Secretary Blinken expressed appreciation for the UAE’s clear condemnation of Hamas’ heinous attacks on Israeli civilians and continued diplomatic engagement to prevent the spread of conflict.

The U.S. Secretary Blinken and Sheikh Mohammed also discussed our shared commitment to building a more integrated, secure, and prosperous region, and reaffirmed the importance of the strategic partnership between the United States and the United Arab Emirates.