U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Egypt for talks Thursday including efforts to try to find progress in achieving a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the war in Gaza.
Blinken’s schedule includes meetings with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi and Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.
Months of talks with U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari officials mediating have yet to bring a deal suitable to both Israel and Hamas.
The negotiations have focused on an outline that includes a halt in fighting and the release of hostages still being held by Hamas militants in Gaza.
The U.S. has not provided a timetable for the revised proposal, though officials have indicated that it would be presented soon.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters Monday, “We continue to engage with our partners in the region, most specifically with Egypt and Qatar, about what that proposal will contain, and making sure or trying to see that it’s a proposal that can get the parties to an ultimate agreement.”
The push for a cease-fire could be complicated by a series of deadly explosions involving pagers used by members of the Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.
