US Secretary of State arrives in Saudi Arabia

By Gozde Bayar

ANKARA (AA) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday to discuss a cease-fire in Gaza.

“US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in the capital Riyadh,” the US Embassy in Riyadh said on X, sharing footage of his plane.

Blinken will discuss ongoing efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza that guarantees the release of hostages and how Hamas is the one standing between the Palestinian people and the cease-fire, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

He will also discuss the recent increase in humanitarian aid delivered to Gaza and stress the importance of ensuring that this increase continues.

Emphasizing the importance of preventing the spread of the conflict, he also will discuss ongoing efforts to achieve lasting peace and security in the region, including through the path to an independent Palestinian state with security guarantees for Israel.

Blinken will participate in a ministerial meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council to enhance coordination in the field of regional security and the World Economic Forum Special Meeting on Global Cooperation, Growth and Energy for Development.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 34,300 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and 77,300 others injured, according to local health authorities.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.