US Secretary of State visits Israel to restart Gaza ceasefire talks

This is Mr. Blinken's 11th visit to the Middle East since the conflict broke out on October 7, 2023, leading to the disastrous war in Gaza. Israel is the first stop on this tour.

The US Secretary of State is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and other officials, before continuing his trip to Jordan and Qatar.

Diplomatic efforts have so far failed to end the war that has lasted more than a year, while the conflict has escalated between Lebanon's Hezbollah movement and Israel.

Early the same morning, Hezbollah announced that it had fired 20 rockets targeting Israeli positions in the suburbs of Tel Aviv, including two military bases and a naval base in Haifa, northern Israel.

Specifically, Hezbollah said it launched a "barrage of missiles" targeting the Glilot base of military intelligence unit 8200. In addition, missiles were targeted at another military base in the suburbs of Tel Aviv and the Stella Maris naval base northwest of Haifa.

The attacks came after a night of heavy Israeli shelling near a major public hospital south of the Lebanese capital Beirut, killing four people, including a child.

The Israeli military said it had intercepted most of the rockets fired from Lebanon, which were detected in central and northern areas of the country. Israel said there were no casualties so far.

On October 21, Israel announced an increase in military operations against Hezbollah, including attacks on about 300 targets across Lebanon in 24 hours. The attacks occurred near Beirut's only international airport.

According to authorities in Lebanon, at least 2,467 people have been killed in the country in a year of fighting, more than half of them since September 23.