According to photos supplied by the Palestinian Authority, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a high-security surprise visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Sunday, meeting with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas.
The top US official met with Abbas in Ramallah as world alarm increases over escalating violence in the Palestinian territory, which has been accompanied by the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza since October 7.
According to Israeli sources, the conflict began after Hamas militants launched an attack on southern Israel, killing 1,400 people, the majority of whom were civilians.
Blinken has visited Israel three times since the war began, and according to the Hamas-run health ministry, nearly 9,500 people have been killed in Israel’s retaliatory land, air, and sea assault on Gaza.
However, it was his first visit to the West Bank since October 7.
For security concerns, the travel was not mentioned in advance, and it came after Blinken visited Jordan and neighboring Israel on Friday.
Following a meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan, Blinken “expressed concern regarding the increasing violence in the West Bank and emphasised the US commitment to working with partners towards a durable and sustainable peace in the region,” according to a statement.
According to the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah, more than 150 Palestinians have been murdered in clashes with Israeli soldiers and attacks by Israeli settlers since the beginning of the war.
Blinken’s meeting with Abbas, whose secularist Fatah party competes with Hamas, came at a time when Washington has thrown its diplomatic and military weight behind Israel.
The US has long argued that a two-state solution is the only way to end the Israeli-Palestinian issue.
Blinken recently stated that the Palestinian Authority should seize control of Gaza, which is now ruled by Hamas.
The United States, as well as a number of European and Arab countries, as well as the United Nations, have expressed concern over the escalating tensions in the West Bank.
The Israeli army announced Friday that its forces were “operating against Hamas” in Jenin and Nablus, which are located in the north of the territory it has occupied since 1967.
During his Middle East tour, Blinken argued for “humanitarian pauses” to protect civilians and enable assistance supplies in the densely populated Gaza Strip, which is under fire.
On Sunday evening, he is scheduled to fly to Ankara, Turkey.