U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit the Middle East again from February 4 to 8, which will be Blinken's fifth visit to the Middle East since the outbreak of the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
Data map. Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and the West Bank from February 4 to 8, according to a U.S. statement.
Blinken will re-establish the basis for an agreement between the parties so that a hostage exchange can take place and a "humanitarian ceasefire" can be achieved, and he will also meet with leaders of the countries concerned to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, the statement said. Another important topic on Blinken's agenda is the situation in the Red Sea and the Houthis in Yemen.
Affected by the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, instability in the Middle East and surrounding areas has intensified in recent years, and the spillover effects of the conflict have continued.
It is worth noting that on the same day (February 2) that Blinken announced his visit to the Middle East, U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin issued a statement saying that under the instructions of Biden, the U.S. military carried out attacks on seven facilities used by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its affiliated militias to attack the U.S. military, including more than 85 targets of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated militias in Iraq and Syria.
According to the New York Times and Reuters, the U.S. military bombed the operational command center, intelligence center, rocket, missile and drone depots, logistics and ammunition chain facilities of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other organizations within half an hour, and said the mission was successful. The retaliatory strike was the first step in a multi-layered U.S. response to Iranian-backed militias.
John Kirby, a spokesman for the White House committee, said that the United States had informed Iraq before carrying out air strikes on targets in Iraq that the U.S. military operation would continue in the next few days.
On February 3, an Iranian spokesman issued a statement strongly condemning the US military action against parts of Syria and Iraq. Iran's official news agency, citing Al Jazeera, reported that a source familiar with the matter revealed that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its subordinate "Quds Force" did not have bases in the areas attacked by the United States. The U.S. claim that the so-called "Quds Force" of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has been attacked is groundless and deceitful to the public.
*丨CCTV News, Reuters, Lianhe Zaobao, etc.