Blinken in Middle East in new push for Gaza truce
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday arrived in Riyadh at the start of a new trip to the Middle East aimed at pushing for an Israel-Hamas ceasefire and increasing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The top US diplomat will also visit Jordan and Israel on his seventh visit to the region since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel which triggered the Israeli assault on Gaza. In Saudi Arabia, Blinken was expected hold new talks with the Saudi leadership on potential normalisation of relations with Israel, a US State Department official said. Saudi Arabia was considering the step -- which would carry massive significance as the kingdom is guardian of Islam's two holiest sites -- before October 7. The United States has sought to keep up momentum, dangling the prospect of normalisation to encourage moderation by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a long-time opponent of Palestinian statehood. Blinken will also meet in Riyadh with a number of Gulf Arab and European foreign ministers who are visiting for a World Economic Forum meeting and Gulf Cooperation Council talks. Blinken will discuss "day-after" plans for reconstruction of post-war Gaza, according to the US State Department. Plans could include funding to rebuild Gaza -- the vast majority of whose people have been displaced -- or support for installing new governance structures. Blinken arrived hours after US President Joe Biden and Netanyahu spoke by phone about ongoing talks to halt Israel's offensive in Gaza in return for the release of hostages. Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying to mediate a new truce between Israel and Hamas for months, as public pressure mounts for a deal. (AFP)