Expectations low as Blinken embarks on Middle East visit

The volatile situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, specially in Jerusalem City, casts a grim shadow on the anticipated tour of the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the Middle East, which began Sunday, and includes Egypt, Israel and the West Bank.Blinken's visit to the occupied Jerusalem Monday will be the first visit of a top American diplomat to Israel since the government of Benjamin Netanyahu assumed power, following the visits of the American National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William J. Burns, and after the American and Israeli sides launched the largest joint military maneuvers last Monday.The American minister has been planning for this trip for a long period, in pursuit of figuring out the policies of the new far-right Israeli occupation government. However, the trip became urgent after the flaring of violence in the occupied Palestinian territories.The trip comes amid a wave of attacks unleashed by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people, where the latest attack on the Jenin camp last Thursday resulted in the martyrdom of 9 Palestinians, and injury to several others.In its response to the Jenin massacre, the Palestinian Authority announced that it had halted the security coordination with Israel immediately, and decided to resort to the Security Council to implement the resolution of international protection for the Palestinian people under Chapter VII, and demanded the ongoing international commission of inquiry in the Human Rights Council to come to Palestine to investigate and refer its findings regarding the responsibility of the occupation for this massacre to the International Criminal Court (ICC), and the Security Council.Spokesperson for the United States Department of State said Blinken will conduct consultations during the trip, with respect to a combination of the regional and international priorities, including the war in Ukraine, Iran file, the latest developments in the occupied Palestinian territories, safeguarding the two-state solution, along with other topics.He added that the US Secretary of State will stress on the exigent need for the two parties in Palestine to take further steps, in pursuit of deescalating the tensions to put an end to the violent cycle, in addition to maintaining the status quo of Al Aqsa Mosque in words and action.Blinken's visit comes at a time when the Israeli occupation government is pursuing far-right stances and policies through escalating attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank and are trying to establish new settlement outposts.The Prime Minister of the Israeli occupation government Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that he would strongly respond to the situation, adding that the Israeli Cabinet would provide more weapons to the Israelis.The Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative Dr Mustafa Barghouti held the occupation government responsible for the escalation of violent acts, pointing out that he expects nothing either from Blinken's visit, or the American administration, warning that things are moving to the direction of a full explosion.He said that the Palestinians should resort to uprising and resistance, indicating that no body is going to protect them from the brutality of the Israeli occupation forces.Some observers in the Middle East see that Blinken was hoping to use his meetings and dialogues in the occupied Jerusalem to ram up pressure on Netanyahu and his government members, on a combination of issues, including rights and freedoms for both the Palestinians and Israelis, in addition to the criticality of establishing a Palestinian state. However, such issues will occupy a second rank, as the most important and exigent thing before the US Secretary of State right now is to urge for de-escalation.Observers underscore that Blinken is likely to repeat the traditional American stance, instead of opening new prospects, adding that the best result of the anticipated tour is that he will manage to ensure stability and avoid the recurrence of May 2021, with reference to the war that broke out in Gaza.Observers say that the new Israeli government calls for numerous policies that are evidently contradictory to the US objectives, including expanding the settlements in the West Bank, which are considered illegal by the United Nations as well. The observers see that the establishment of an adjacent Palestinian state in light of these Israeli practices as impossible.