Blinken arrives in Riyadh for key talks with Saudi FM

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Riyadh for discussions with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

Key topics on the agenda are expected to include the resolution of conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, Caliber.Az reports referring to Arabic media.

Additionally, the two officials will address concerns regarding Israel's potential retaliatory actions against Iran.

Blinken spoke with members of the media at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv before departing for Saudi Arabia. He said on October 23 that “now is the time” to end the conflict in Gaza, and urged Israel to avoid further escalation with Iran.

Notably, Blinken’s visit to the region is his 11th since the start of the war in Gaza and his first since Israel-Hezbollah violence escalated to an all-out war late last month.

The war in Gaza began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed 42,718 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry which the UN considers reliable.

By Aghakazim Guliyev