Blinken Set to Return to the Mideast for 5th Time Since Gaza Conflict Began

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks on during a press conference held by him and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, U.S., January 29, 2024. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks on during a press conference held by him and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, U.S., January 29, 2024. (Reuters)
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Blinken Set to Return to the Mideast for 5th Time Since Gaza Conflict Began

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks on during a press conference held by him and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, U.S., January 29, 2024. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks on during a press conference held by him and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, U.S., January 29, 2024. (Reuters)

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will return to the Middle East later this week on his fifth urgent diplomatic mission since Israel’s war with Hamas began in October, the White House and a State Department official said Wednesday.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby and the State Department official said Blinken would travel to the Mideast this weekend as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to prepare for post-conflict reconstruction and governance of Gaza, ramp up humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians, release hostages held by Hamas and prevent the war from spreading.

The trip comes as discussions over a cease-fire and hostage release are intensifying, but also as fears grow of a regional conflict.

“These negotiations, our negotiations, are very, very active," Kirby said, noting talks held last weekend between CIA Director William Burns, senior Israeli and Egyptian intelligence officials and Qatar's prime minister. “We believe that the discussions have been productive. They’ve been moving in the right direction.”

He also recalled a recent trip to the Mideast by national security council official Brett McGurk, a call between President Joe Biden and the emir of Qatar, whose country is the chief interlocutor with Hamas, and he said: Blinken “will be heading back over to the region at the end of this week.”

The State Department official said Blinken would be traveling to the Middle East “in the coming days” but could not give exact dates or destinations because the trip was still being planned. On his previous visits, Blinken has stopped in Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye and Iraq.



Report: Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov to Visit Iran on Tuesday to Discuss Syria

A handout photo made available by the Russian State Duma Press Service shows Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov delivering his report “On the priorities of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation” during a plenary session of the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, in Moscow, Russia, 19 February 2025. (EPA/ Russian State Duma Press Service Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Russian State Duma Press Service shows Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov delivering his report “On the priorities of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation” during a plenary session of the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, in Moscow, Russia, 19 February 2025. (EPA/ Russian State Duma Press Service Handout)
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Report: Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov to Visit Iran on Tuesday to Discuss Syria

A handout photo made available by the Russian State Duma Press Service shows Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov delivering his report “On the priorities of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation” during a plenary session of the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, in Moscow, Russia, 19 February 2025. (EPA/ Russian State Duma Press Service Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Russian State Duma Press Service shows Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov delivering his report “On the priorities of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation” during a plenary session of the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, in Moscow, Russia, 19 February 2025. (EPA/ Russian State Duma Press Service Handout)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit Iran on Tuesday to discuss Syrian developments with his Iranian counterpart, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Saturday.

Russia and Iran were the main allies of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.