Blinken cancels Israel trip amid escalating Iran threats
Secretary of State USA Antony Blinken has completely cancelled his trip to Israel. Earlier, the White House reported its postponement due to the threat of an attack from Iran.
"U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is now reported to have Fully Canceled his Trip to Israel after it was Postponed yesterday, due to the Threat of an Iranian Attack," reads the post by OSINTdefender on the X platform.
Journalist Anna Rayva-Barsky was the first to report on this issue, providing the information on X:
Visit cancelled due to threat of attack from Iran
On Tuesday, reports of Blinken's postponed visit to Qatar, Egypt, and Israel appeared. According to Axios journalist Barak Ravid on the X platform, citing two sources in the administration, Blinken postponed the departure due to "uncertainty about the situation."
Blinken's visit, which was supposed to include discussions on the possibility of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, has not been officially announced. However, on Tuesday, the White House envoy to the Middle East, Brett McGurk, arrived in Cairo, while the energy envoy, Amos Hochstein, visited Lebanon, both making efforts to prevent the conflict from expanding in the Middle East.
Iranian attack on Israel inevitable?
The White House previously warned that it expects a "significant" retaliatory attack by Iran and its allies on Israel likely later this week. However, according to sources cited by Axios, this attack will not occur on Tuesday. The attack is expected to be Tehran's response to the assassination of the Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
Another round of peace talks about a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of hostages was planned for Thursday. However, it is unclear if the negotiations will occur in light of the potential escalation of the conflict.
