Returning to the Middle East for the ninth time, can the US Secretary of State cool down the "fire pan"?

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on August 18 to seek a ceasefire in Gaza that could help prevent a wider war.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on August 18 to seek a ceasefire in Gaza that could help prevent a wider war. (Source: Arabnews)

Making his ninth trip to the Middle East since the Gaza war began with a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Mr. Blinken will meet with Israeli leaders before ceasefire talks resume in Cairo, Egypt.

Mediators including the US, Qatar and Egypt said talks to reach a ceasefire in the 10-month-old war were making progress, while US President Joe Biden said "we are closer than ever".

However, Hamas political leader Sami Abu Zuhri has dampened that cautious optimism, telling AFP that signs of progress after two days of talks in Doha were "illusory".

“What we have in front of us is not a real agreement or negotiations, but the imposition of American directives,” Mr. Zuhri said.

The optimism that preceded months of ceasefire talks has proven unfounded. The stakes have risen after the killings of a string of leaders of the Iran-backed militant group in late July, including Hamas’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh, and as the humanitarian crisis in the besieged Gaza Strip has been exacerbated by a terrifying polio outbreak.

After mediators said they had presented a “bridging proposal” to bridge the remaining differences between the warring parties, Hamas said it had rejected Israel’s “new conditions” and called for the plan outlined by Mr Biden to be implemented by the end of May.

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