It will be Blinken's eighth diplomatic mission to the region since the conflict began in October.
FILE - Secretary of State Antony Blinken disembarks from a plane in Tel Aviv, Oct. 16, 2023, from Jordan. this week as a proposed Israel - Hamas cease-fire deal hangs in the balance after the dramatic rescue of four Israel i hostages held in Gaza in a major military raid and turmoil in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's government., Blinken on Monday will start his eighth diplomatic mission to the region since the conflict began in October.
In his talks with el-Sissi and Qatari leaders, whose countries are the main mediators with Hamas in the cease-fire negotiations, Blinken will stress the importance of persuading the militants to accept the three-phase proposal on the table. The plan calls for the release of more hostages and a temporary pause in hostilities that could lead to the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Netanyahu's far-right allies have threatened to collapse his government if he implements the plan, and Benny Gantz, a popular centrist,from the three-member War Cabinet after saying he would do if the prime minister did not formulate a new plan for postwar Gaza. In the aftermath of the hostage rescue, Netanyahu had urged him not to step down.
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Friday that Blinken would use the trip to "discuss how the cease-fire proposal would benefit both Israelis and Palestinians."
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