Washington’s top diplomat discusses the Gaza war with Turkey’s mercurial leader on Saturday before flying to Crete to address Greek worries about the looming sale of US fighter jets to Ankara.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Istanbul late Friday for the first leg of a trip that includes visits to both Israel and West Bank.
Blinken’s fourth crisis tour since the start of the Israel-Hamas war three months ago comes with fears mounting that the conflict will engulf swathes of the Middle East.
A senior US administration official said Blinken will press Israel to increase aid to Palestinians and move to a phase of combat that allows the displaced to start returning to their homes.
The official added that much of the discussions with Arab leaders will focus on containing the violence and looking at how the region can be governed once the fighting ends.
Istanbul served as a base for Hamas political leaders until…
Source: Guardian Newspaper
