Blinken arrives in Qatar for Gaza cease-fire talks

DOHA, Qatar

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday evening after coming from Egypt as part of ongoing consultations aimed at achieving a cease-fire in Gaza.

Egypt is expected to host a new round of talks before the end of the week focusing on prisoner exchanges and halting the conflict.

Blinken’s visit comes following indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group Hamas which took place in Doha on Aug.15 and 16. The discussions are set to continue in Cairo.

Hamas has rejected recent claims by US President Joe Biden that the group “backed away” from a cease-fire agreement, asserting its commitment to ending the conflict.

The Qatar-based Al Jazeera channel reported that Blinken arrived in Doha, with footage of his arrival broadcast.

The network did not provide details on the duration or agenda of his visit, which is part of his ninth regional tour since the conflict in Gaza began last October.

On Tuesday, Blinken discussed the progress of Gaza negotiations with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, according to a statement from the Egyptian presidency.

The meeting followed Blinken's arrival in the new city of El Alamein, located northwest of Cairo, after visiting Israel.

On the same day, Hamas dismissed Biden's recent comments about the group's alleged withdrawal from a cease-fire agreement as “misleading claims,” reaffirming its commitment to ending the conflict.

The Israeli public broadcaster KAN later cited unnamed sources from the Israeli negotiating team who claimed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is attempting to “blow up” the negotiations and obstruct reaching a deal with Hamas.

On Sunday, Netanyahu reiterated his commitment to maintaining military control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border, while Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid accused him of stalling and undermining the negotiations.

For months, the US, Qatar and Egypt have been trying to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas to ensure a prisoner exchange and cease-fire and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. But mediation efforts have been stalled due to Netanyahu’s refusal to meet Hamas’s demands to stop the war.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.

The conflict has resulted in over 40,170 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, and more than 92,740 injuries, according to local health authorities.

The ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered a halt to military operations in the southern city of Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge before the area was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio