US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken was in Cairo on Tuesday where he met with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and top diplomats meditating talks between Israel and Hamas.
The discussions are part of the latest effort to broker a Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal between Israel and Palestinian group, Hamas.
Blinken’s ninth trip to the region since the start of the conflict comes amid fears it could widen into a deeper regional war.
After meeting yesterday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Blinken said Israel has accepted a US “bridging proposal” aimed at narrowing differences between the two sides.
He urged Hamas to do the same, as a basis for further talks.
The militant group has not explicitly rejected the proposal, but said in a statement that it overturns what was previously agreed on.
However, experts believe a ceasefire in Gaza is more likely now because of pressure imposed on various parties, including the threat of Iran and its allies attacking Israel.
Nomi Bar-Yaacov, an associate fellow at the prestigious British think tank Chatham House, said US President Joe Biden was also under pressure to make the latest round of negotiations work.
She believes Washington has “lost patience with its ally’s behaviour”.
“I think Blinken is willing to expose Netanyahu if he is not going to agree, if he’s going to mount conditions, new conditions, if he’s not going to stick to the Biden ceasefire proposal and the Security Council resolution proposal,” she said.
“And if he insists on new conditions, which he knows, Hamas is not going to be able to, accept, I think that’s what we should be watching for.”
Bar-Yaacov said that, as well as Blinken’s visit coinciding with the Democratic convention, it also comes as the threat of an attack from Iran or its proxies grows.
“The clock is ticking with Iran and Hezbollah, and potentially all of Iran’s proxies of which there are many, organising a coordinated attack or some horrific attack and in an unprecedented fashion against Israel,” she said.
Iranian officials last week said only a ceasefire deal in Gaza would hold it back from direct retaliation against Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on its soil.
“If leverage isn’t exercised, sufficient leverage, serious leverage and cost on Israel by the United States and on Hamas by Qatar – it takes two to tango – then we’re not going to see a deal,” said Bar-Yaacov.
After Egypt, Blinken will travel to Qatar for further negotiations following meetings in Israel on Monday.
