With fears growing that the Israel-Hamas war is developing into a wider regional crisis, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken began his fourth emergency trip to the Middle East in just three months on Saturday with a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The pair discussed strategies to contain the conflict in the Gaza Strip and other ways to promote “lasting regional peace,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told NBC News.
Turkey is a member of NATO and a key US ally, Erdoğan has criticized Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent weeks.
During the face-to-face, Blinken emphasized the need to “prevent the conflict from spreading, secure the release of hostages, expand humanitarian aid and reduce civilian casualties,” as well as the need for a “Palestinian state,” Miller said.
After the meeting with Erdoğan, Blinken left Turkey for Crete, where he was scheduled to meet with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken after he landed in Turkey Saturday for a meeting on the Israel-Hamas war. POOL/AFP via Getty Images Smoke is seen billowing over Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images
He is also scheduled to make stops in Jordan, Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the West Bank, and Egypt as he tries to find a diplomatic solution to the growing violence in the Middle East.
But despite international efforts, signs of the Israel-Hamas conflict were clear on Saturday morning, when Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel from Lebanon.
The terrorist group claimed it launched 62 rockets, and carried out a direct attack on an Israeli surveillance base on Mount Meron, along with two Israeli military bases near the Israel-Lebanon border.
Blinken (left) met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday in addition to meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. AP
The Israeli army however said that 40 rockets were fired and did not mention the Meron area was hit.
The rocket attack came a day after Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah called on the group to avenge the death of Hamas political leader Saleh al-Arouri, believed to be the architect of the October 7 attack on Israel that started the war, by an Israeli. airstrikes in Beirut on Tuesday.
Hours after the Hezbollah attack, Israel’s Channel 12 released a video that appeared to show an Israeli military helicopter shooting down a drone launched by the terrorist group.
“This is how a helicopter gunship shot down a Hezbollah drone – a day of fighting in the north with a heavy attack on Miron and many launches into the Galilee,” outlet explained on X.
Claims that the drone was shot down could not be immediately confirmed.
Residents of northern Israel and southern Lebanon also saw large Israeli Air Force missile-detecting balloons – “Elevated Sensor,” or “Sky Dew” – placed along the border.
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The system is not operational and has faced several development hurdles, the Times of Israel reported.
The system went live on Saturday after receiving parts shipped from the US, the outlet added, citing local news reports.
Also on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces released new footage of its elite Egoz commando unit in southern Gaza, where it said troops battled Hamas gunmen at a school and raided the home of the terror group’s eastern battalion commander Khan Younis.
“In the town of Bani Suheila on the outskirts of Khan Younis, Egoz troops stormed a school where Hamas operatives were hiding,” Times of Israel newspaper Emanuel Fabian write on X with video from the Egoz unit firing past blackboards and other school materials.
“The IDF said soldiers killed three gunmen during clashes at the school. On their bodies, it says the team found RPGs and ‘lots of intelligence’ about the Khan Younis Hamas brigade,” Fabian added.
IDF troops in the Gaza Strip also raided public houses “used as terrorist infrastructure by Hamas,” the military wrote in X.
A children’s puzzle promoting violence against Israel was found by Israeli forces in a house in southern Gaza. IDF/Telegram
“Our commandos found weapons, grenades, magazines and Hamas vests,” the IDF announced alongside images of piles of guns and ammunition.
“Several weapons and combat materials were located in the bedroom next to children’s dolls and games, including those that incite hatred and violence against Israel,” they added, referring to children’s puzzles that appeared to promote violence against Israel.
The disturbing colorful children’s toy depicts a child wearing a white robe and holding a Palestinian flag firing a machine gun, as well as gunmen on a boat approaching Israel from the sea.
The IDF released new footage of the elite Egoz commando unit operating in southern Gaza, in which it said troops stormed the home of Hamas’ eastern battalion commander Khan Younis and clashed with gunmen at a school.
In the town of Bani Suheila on the outskirts of Khan Younis, the Egoz team… pic.twitter.com/C4wYZFLAqu
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) January 6, 2024
The caption above the puzzle reads “Liberate Palestine” in English and Arabic.
As the war between Israel and Hamas approaches its 100th day, the mother of an Israeli man who was confirmed last Friday to have been killed in a Hamas attack on October 7 slammed the Israeli state for failing to prevent and deal with the massacre.
Yael Adar wrote on Facebook on Saturday that saying her son, Tamir Adar, 38, was killed in the attack “minimizes the magnitude of the failure.”
Smoke billows over the southern Lebanese border village of Khiam following Israeli bombing. AFP via Getty Images
“The message should have been different: Tamir was seriously injured while he was protecting his family and the community, without protection for the settlement,” complained Yael.
“Tamir was kidnapped while injured and still alive. Tamir was killed without immediate medical attention,” he added.
“This is default! It is easy for everyone to write killed on October 7 as if it happened in a moment that Tamir did not feel, and he could not be saved. If the state works, Tamir will be saved. If the state was functioning, this failure would not have happened,” said the grieving mother.
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
