Blinken opens latest urgent Mideast tour in Turkey as fears grow that Gaza war may engulf region

By MATTHEW LEE
AP Diplomatic Writer

ISTANBUL (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has kicked off his latest urgent Middle East diplomatic mission in Turkey as fears mount that Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza may explode into a broader conflict. Blinken’s fourth visit in three months comes amid worrying developments outside of Gaza, including in Lebanon, northern Israel, the Red Sea and Iraq, that have put intense strains on what had been a modestly successful U.S. push to prevent a regional conflagration and growing international criticism of Israel’s military operation. The difficulty of Blinken’s task was underscored as Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah militia fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel on Saturday in response to the killing of a top Hamas leader in Lebanon’s capital.