DOHA, Qatar

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the Qatari capital Doha on Thursday to discuss mediation efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon.

The meeting reviewed strategic relations between Qatar and the US and ways to enhance them, as well as the latest regional and international developments of mutual interest, Amiri Diwan, the emir's office, said in a statement.

The two sides discussed developments in Gaza and Lebanon, along with joint diplomatic mediation efforts to halt the fighting, it added.

Blinken arrived in Doha early Thursday on the third leg of a regional tour to push for a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon. He already visited Israel and Saudi Arabia as part of the tour.

Regional tensions have escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 42,800 people, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack last year.

The conflict has spread to Lebanon, with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country in an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and the group since the start of the Gaza war.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala