Blinken Meets Saudi Crown Prince

Sudan Events – Sumaya Sayed

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia Monday to hold a meeting with the Kingdom’s top officials, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with officials in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia Monday, then heads to Israel, as he pushes for more humanitarian aid to Gaza, the protection of civilians and to ensure the conflict does not spread to other parts of the region.

U.S. has continued to support Israel in refusing Arab demands for a cease-fire to halt the fighting in the three-month war.

Jordan’s royal court said King Abdullah “warned of the catastrophic repercussions” of Israel’s war in Gaza against Hamas while calling on the U.S. to press for an immediate cease-fire.

Israeli and U.S. officials have said they believe that a cease-fire would only allow Hamas to be able to regroup in its fight against Israeli forces.

While in Amman, Blinken also visited a World Food Program warehouse where trucks are loaded with aid for famished Palestinians in Gaza.

“The efforts right here to collect and distribute food to people in need are absolutely essential,” Blinken said. “The United States has worked from day one to open access routes into Gaza.”

“We continue to work on that every single day, not only to open them but to multiply them, to maximize them and to try to get more assistance, more effectively,” he said. “We’re determined to do everything we possibly can to ameliorate the situation for the men, women and children in Gaza.”

Blinken’s trip comes at a time when the risk of a broader regional conflict is surging, despite collective efforts of Western and regional powers to confine the Israel-Hamas war to the Gaza Strip.