US Secretary of State heads back to Middle East
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head to the Middle East Thursday night to work on preventing the war in Gaza from spreading into a wider conflict. Blinken will visit Israel and other nations important to maintaining some stability in the region.
This is Secretary Blinken’s fourth trip to the Middle East since war began and the State department says his top priority is de-escalation.
State department spokesman Matthew Miller says the U.S. remains focused on easing tensions in the Middle East.
“Even if it’s tough, sometimes it’s the job of the United States to do that,” said Miller.
Blinken's trip to the region comes just days after a drone strike killed a senior Hamas leader in Lebanon.
“It is no one’s interest--not Israel’s, not the regions, not the world’s--for this conflict to spread beyond Gaza,” said Miller.
Israel did not claim responsibility for the attack, but both Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah military group immediately blamed them and vowed a "strong response" if Israel continues to target Lebanon.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby says *if* Israel was responsible they still have justification.
“They have a right and a responsibility to go after Hamas leadership. They said that they were going to do that,” he said.
Kirby also says any military action in the region needs to follow international law.
“We continue to talk to our Israeli counterparts about the manner in which they're conducting military operations with the foremost in mind the need to protect innocent civilian life,” he added.
The State Department says while Blinken is in Israel he will discuss getting more immediate humanitarian aid to Gaza.