Next move towards a truce? Blinken tours Middle East to secure Israel-Hamas deal

Overnight there were deaths in Gaza City, as Israel continued to bomb areas around the Al Shifa hospital. The death toll of Palestinians killed since the start of the war is now almost 32,000 and counting. Rafah has also been struck this Wednesday. 

Antony Blinken, meanwhile, is in Saudi Arabia. This is the sixth regional visit by the US Secretary of State since October 7, 2023, when Hamas killed some 1,200 Israeli civilians and took at least 250 hostage.

The plight of the remaining 135 hostages in captivity remains a headline story, and an embarrassment for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His pledge to bring them home rings hollow for the families who fear for the safety of their loved ones held by the terrorists somewhere underground in Gaza. 

Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Rebecca Gnignati and Juliette Brown.

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