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Blinken heads to Middle East for 11th time since Gaza war, truce prospects uncertain

Blinken heads to Middle East for 11th time since Gaza war, truce prospects uncertain
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's trip to the Middle East marks his eleventh since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that triggered the Gaza war. (File/AFP)
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Updated 21 October 2024

Blinken heads to Middle East for 11th time since Gaza war, truce prospects uncertain

Blinken heads to Middle East for 11th time since Gaza war, truce prospects uncertain
  • Latest trip to region comes as Israel has intensified military campaign in Gaza and in Lebanon against Iran-aligned militia Hezbollah
  • Blinken to discuss with regional leaders importance of ending Gaza war and ways to chart post-war plan

WASHINGTON DC: Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading again to the Middle East, making his 11th trip to the region since the war in Gaza erupted last year and as Israel steps up attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The State Department said Blinken would depart Monday for a weeklong trip to Israel and a number of Arab countries on a visit that also comes as Israel weighs retaliation against Iran for a ballistic missile attack earlier this month. His other stops are likely to include Jordan, 海角直播, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, officials say.
The trip had been expected after President Joe Biden said last week he would dispatch Blinken to the region following Israel鈥檚 killing of Hamas military chief Yahya Sinwar, a move that some believe could open a window for new talks on a ceasefire proposal that has been languishing for months.
In Israel on Tuesday, Blinken will meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, according to Israeli officials.
鈥淪ecretary Blinken will discuss the importance of bringing the war in Gaza to an end, securing the release of all hostages, and alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people,鈥 State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
In the region, Blinken will discuss planning for when the conflict ends and 鈥渢he need to chart a new path forward that enables Palestinians to rebuild their lives,鈥 Miller added.
He said Blinken also would underscore the need for a dramatic increase in the amount of humanitarian aid reaching Gaza, something that Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made clear in a letter to Israeli officials last week. That letter reminded Israel that the Biden administration could be forced by US law to curtail some forms of military aid should the delivery of humanitarian assistance continue to be hindered.
In addition to the conflict in Gaza, Blinken will also raise the importance the administration places on reaching a diplomatic resolution to the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and elsewhere.
鈥淗e will reaffirm the US commitment to work with partners across the region to de-escalate tensions and provide lasting stability,鈥 Miller said in the statement.
Since the Hamas attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the Israeli response, Blinken has traveled to the Middle East 10 other times seeking an end to the crisis. His previous trips have yielded little in the way of ending hostilities, but he has managed to increase aid deliveries to Gaza in the past.
Since just last month, the situation has grown increasingly tense, sparking renewed fears of a wider regional war, particularly since Israel began ground operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah and killed its leader Hassan Nasrallah in a massive airstrike in the Beirut suburbs.
Iran has responded to Israeli attacks against its proxies with ballistic missile launches, the latest of which Israel has yet to retaliate for. Biden administration officials have cautioned Israel about its planned retaliation and believe they have won assurances from Israeli leaders that they will not hit nuclear or oil facilities.
However, Netanyahu has said repeatedly that while Israel will listen to American advice, his country will act in its own national interest. And previous US warnings about escalation have gone unheeded.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden was 鈥渄eeply concerned鈥 about the unauthorized release of classified documents on Israel鈥檚 preparation for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Monday. US officials said an investigation is underway.


Israel says attacks on Iran are 鈥榥othing鈥 compared with what is coming

Iranian Red Crescent volunteers gather in front of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike in Tehran on June 14, 2025. (AFP)
Iranian Red Crescent volunteers gather in front of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike in Tehran on June 14, 2025. (AFP)
Updated 21 min 33 sec ago

Israel says attacks on Iran are 鈥榥othing鈥 compared with what is coming

Iranian Red Crescent volunteers gather in front of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike in Tehran on June 14, 2025. (AFP)
  • Netanyahu said Israel鈥檚 strikes had set back Iran鈥檚 nuclear program possibly by years but rejected international calls for restraint

JERUSALEM/DUBAI: Iran and Israel traded missiles and airstrikes on Saturday, the day after Israel launched a sweeping air offensive against its old enemy, killing commanders and scientists and bombing nuclear sites in a stated bid to stop it building an atomic weapon.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel鈥檚 strikes had set back Iran鈥檚 nuclear program possibly by years but rejected international calls for restraint, saying the attack would be intensified.
鈥淲e will hit every site and every target of the Ayatollahs鈥 regime, and what they have felt so far is nothing compared with what they will be handed in the coming days,鈥 he said in a video message.
In Tehran, Iranian state TV reported that around 60 people, including 20 children, had been killed in an attack on a housing complex, with more strikes reported across the country. Israel said it had attacked more than 150 targets.
In Israel, air raid sirens sent residents into shelters as waves of missiles streaked across the sky and interceptors rose to meet them. At least three people were killed overnight. An Israeli official said Iran had fired around 200 ballistic missiles in four waves.
US President Donald Trump has lauded Israel鈥檚 strikes and warned of much worse to come unless Iran quickly accepts the sharp downgrading of its nuclear program that the US has demanded in talks that had been due to resume on Sunday.
But with Israel saying its operation could last weeks, and urging Iran鈥檚 people to rise up against their Islamic clerical rulers, fears have grown of a regional conflagration dragging in outside powers.
The United States, Israel鈥檚 main ally, helped shoot down Iranian missiles, two US officials said.
鈥淚f (Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn,鈥 Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said.
Iran had vowed to avenge Friday鈥檚 Israeli onslaught, which gutted Iran鈥檚 nuclear and military leadership and damaged atomic plants and military bases.
Tehran warned Israel鈥檚 allies that their military bases in the region would come under fire too if they helped shoot down Iranian missiles, state television reported.
However, 20 months of war in Gaza and a conflict in Lebanon last year have decimated Tehran鈥檚 strongest regional proxies, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, reducing its options for retaliation.
Lawmaker and military general Esmail Kosari said Iran was reviewing whether to close the Strait of Hormuz, the exit point for oil shipped from the Gulf.
Nights of blasts and fear in Israel and Iran
Iran鈥檚 overnight fusillade included hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones, an Israeli official said. Three people, including a man and a woman, were killed and dozens wounded, the ambulance service said.
In Rishon LeZion, south of Tel Aviv, emergency services rescued a baby girl trapped in a house hit by a missile, police said, but later on Saturday Tel Aviv beaches were busy with people enjoying the weekend.
In the western suburb of Ramat Gan, near Ben Gurion airport, Linda Grinfeld described her apartment being damaged: 鈥淲e were sitting in the shelter, and then we heard such a boom. It was awful.鈥
The Israeli military said it had intercepted surface-to-surface Iranian missiles as well as drones, and that two rockets had been fired from Gaza.
In Iran, Israel鈥檚 two days of strikes destroyed residential apartment buildings, killing families and neighbors as apparent collateral damage in strikes targeting scientists and senior officials in their beds.
Iran said 78 people had been killed on the first day and scores more on the second day, many of them when a missile brought down a 14-story apartment block in Tehran.
State TV said 60 people were believed to have been killed there, though the figure was not officially confirmed.
It broadcast pictures of a building flattened into debris and the facade of several upper storys lying sideways in the street, while slabs of concrete dangled from a neighboring building.
鈥淪moke and dust were filling all the house and we couldn鈥檛 breathe,鈥 45-year-old Tehran resident Mohsen Salehi told Iranian news agency WANA after an overnight air strike woke his family.
Fars News agency said two projectiles had hit Mehrabad airport, located inside the capital, which is both civilian and military.
With Iran鈥檚 air defenses heavily damaged, Israeli Air Force chief Tomer Bar said 鈥渢he road to Iran has been paved.鈥
In preparation for possible further escalation, reservists were being deployed across Israel. Army Radio reported units had been positioned along the Lebanese and Jordanian borders.
Iranian nuclear sites damaged
Israel sees Iran鈥檚 nuclear program as a threat to its existence, and said the bombardment was designed to avert the last steps to production of a nuclear weapon.
A military official on Saturday said Israel had caused significant damage to Iran鈥檚 nuclear facilities at Natanz and Isfahan, but had not so far taken on another uranium enrichment site, Fordow, dug into a mountain.
The official said Israel had 鈥渆liminated the highest commanders of their military leadership鈥 and had killed nine nuclear scientists who were 鈥渕ain sources of knowledge, main forces driving forward the (nuclear) program.鈥
Tehran insists the program is entirely civilian in line with its obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and that it does not seek an atomic bomb.
However, it has repeatedly hidden some part from international inspectors, and the International Atomic Energy Agency on Thursday reported it in violation of the NPT.
Iranian talks with the United States to resolve the nuclear dispute have stuttered this year.
The next meeting was set for Sunday but Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Saturday that continuing the talks while Israel鈥檚 鈥渂arbarous鈥 attacks lasted was unjustifiable.


We will recognize the State of Palestine soon, Macron tells Asharq News

French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday. (File/Reuters)
French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday. (File/Reuters)
Updated 14 June 2025

We will recognize the State of Palestine soon, Macron tells Asharq News

French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Friday. (File/Reuters)
  • French president: 鈥業 have agreed with the Saudi crown prince to postpone the New York conference to a date in the near future鈥

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron pledged, in statements to on the sidelines of a meeting with journalists and representatives of Palestinian and Israeli civil society institutions, that his country will recognize the State of Palestine at an upcoming conference that France will organize with 海角直播 in New York.
In response to a question about whether there are conditions for recognizing the Palestinian state, Macron said: 鈥淭here are no conditions. Recognition will take place through a process that includes stopping the war on Gaza, restoring humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip, releasing Israeli hostages, and disarming Hamas.鈥
He stressed: 鈥淭his is one package.鈥
Macron indicated that France and 海角直播 have agreed to postpone the UN conference they are co-organizing, which was originally scheduled to take place in New York next week. He noted that current developments have prevented Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from traveling to New York.
Macron explained that he had spoken several times with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Friday and Palestinian President Abbas, and it was agreed to 鈥減ostpone the meeting to a date in the near future.鈥
He also claimed that the president of Indonesia, which currently does not officially recognize Israel, had pledged to do so if France recognizes the State of Palestine. Macron emphasized 鈥渢he need for maintaining this dynamic.鈥
The International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine, scheduled to be held in New York from June 17-20 and co-chaired by 海角直播 and France, outlined in its paper a commitment to the 鈥渢wo-state solution鈥 as the foundational reference. The paper defines a timeline for implementation, outlines the practical obligations of all parties involved, and calls for the establishment of international mechanisms to ensure the continuity of the process.
Asharq News obtained a copy of the paper, which asserts that the implementation of the two-state solution must proceed regardless of local or regional developments. It ensures the full recognition of a Palestinian state as part of a political solution that upholds people鈥檚 rights and responds to their aspirations for peace and security.
The paper highlights that the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks and the war on Gaza have led to an unprecedented escalation in violence and casualties, resulting in the most severe humanitarian crisis to date, widespread destruction, and immense suffering for civilians on both sides, including detainees, their families, and residents of Gaza.
It further confirms that settlement activities pose a threat to the two-state solution, which it states is the only path to achieving a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace in the region. The paper notes that the settlement activities undermine regional and international peace, security, and prosperity.
According to the paper, the conference aims to alter the current course by building on national, regional, and international initiatives and adopting concrete measures to uphold international law. The conference will also focus on advancing a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace that ensures security for all the people of the region and fosters regional integration.
The conference reaffirms the international community鈥檚 unwavering commitment to a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian cause and the two-state solution, highlighting the urgent need to act in pursuit of these objectives.


Iranian media claims Israeli pilots captured, IDF denies

Iranian media claims Israeli pilots captured, IDF denies
Updated 14 June 2025

Iranian media claims Israeli pilots captured, IDF denies

Iranian media claims Israeli pilots captured, IDF denies

DUBAI: The Iranian army has claimed they have downed a third Israeli F-35 fighter jet since Israel鈥檚 attacks began on Friday.

State Iranian media, Tehran Times, reported that one pilot is believed to have been liquidated and another captured by Iranian forces.

However, the Israeli Defense Forces denied the claims dubbing the news 鈥渇ake鈥.

鈥淭his news being spread by Iranian media is completely baseless鈥 the IDF鈥檚 Arabic spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Friday the launch of 鈥淥peration Rising Lion鈥 against Iran in an effort to deter the Iranian threat of nuclear weapons to Israel. Netanyahu confirmed the operation will continue until the mission is accomplished.


Closure of Strait of Hormuz seriously being reviewed by Iran, lawmaker says

Closure of Strait of Hormuz seriously being reviewed by Iran, lawmaker says
Updated 14 June 2025

Closure of Strait of Hormuz seriously being reviewed by Iran, lawmaker says

Closure of Strait of Hormuz seriously being reviewed by Iran, lawmaker says
  • The Strait of Hormuz, which lies between Oman and Iran, is the world鈥檚 most important gateway for oil shipping

The closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz was being seriously reviewed by Iran, IRINN reported, citing statements by Esmail Kosari, a member of the parliament鈥檚 security commission.

The Strait of Hormuz, which lies between Oman and Iran, is the world鈥檚 most important gateway for oil shipping.


Jordan reopens airspace to civilian aircraft

Jordan reopens airspace to civilian aircraft
Updated 14 June 2025

Jordan reopens airspace to civilian aircraft

Jordan reopens airspace to civilian aircraft
  • Jordan said airlines would be provided with the 鈥渘ecessary鈥 information to notify passengers and stakeholders of the latest data on air traffic

DUBAI: Jordan has reopened its airspace to civilian aircraft on Saturday, signaling belief there was no longer an immediate danger of further attacks after crossfire between Israel and Iran disrupted East-West travel through the Middle East.
But the country 鈥渋s continuing to assess risks to civil aviation and monitor developments after Jordan鈥檚 airspace was reopened this morning,鈥 a statement from the civil aviation authority said, and reported by state-run
The Kingdom on Friday closed its airspace to all flights due to the barrage of missiles and rockets from Iran.
The statement also said airlines would be provided with the 鈥渘ecessary鈥 information to notify passengers and stakeholders of the latest data on air traffic.
Lebanon鈥檚 government also temporarily reopened its airspace on Saturday.
Lebanon reopened its airspace on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. (0700 GMT).
The airspace will be shut again starting from 10:30 p.m. (1930 GMT) until 6:00 a.m. (0300 GMT) on Sunday, NNA reported, citing the Lebanese civil aviation authority.