For today, links to reports from Agence France-Presse, Reuters, and National Public Radio, and to commentary from Foreign Affairs; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM
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Blinken lands in Saudi on latest Mideast crisis trip. From AFP. RIYADH — Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Saudi Arabia today to kick off his latest regional crisis trip aimed at securing a new truce in the Israel-Hamas war. The top U.S. diplomat’s plane touched down . . . READ MORE . . .
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UN agency says Israeli naval fire hit food convoy in Gaza. From AFP. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said today that a Gaza food convoy was struck by the Israeli navy, which controls the waters off the territory. “A food convoy waiting to move into northern Gaza . . . READ MORE . . .
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Palestinians hope Blinken visit can deliver Gaza truce before Rafah assault, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters Palestinians huddling under bombardment in Gaza said today they hoped a visit to the region by the U.S. secretary of state would finally deliver a truce, in time to head off a threatened new Israeli assault on the last refuge at the enclave’s edge. Antony Blinken was headed. . . READ MORE . . .
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Israeli settler violence ‘must stop’: French FM. From AFP. French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said today that Israeli “settler violence must stop” against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “Under no . . . READ MORE . . .
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Israel shouldn’t keep a military presence in Gaza after the war, analyst says. Leila Fadel of NPR speaks with Palestinian writer and analyst Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib about the future of security and governance in Gaza. Click HERE to read and, later, listen.
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Will U.S. strikes in Iraq, Syria and Yemen lead to more fighting in the region? Reported by Leila Fadel and Greg Myre | NPR First, Hamas attacked Israel, igniting a local war. Then the Houthis fired on ships, drawing in the U.S. Navy. Now the U.S .is bombing Iraq, Syria and Yemn as part of a tense standoff with Iran. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.
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Spycraft and statecraft, by CIA Director William J. Burns | Foreign Affairs The crisis precipitated by Hamas’s butchery in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, is a painful reminder of the complexity of the choices that the Middle East continues to pose for the United States. I have rarely seen the Middle East more tangled or explosive. Winding down . . . READ MORE . . .