U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will begin a new diplomatic tour of the Middle East on Thursday with a planned stop in Israel, a U.S. official said Wednesday night, amid growing fears of an escalating war between Israel and the Palestinian Authority’s Hamas. AFP , adopted by Agerpres.

Washington’s foreign minister will leave Thursday night for a trip that will include Israel and several other stops in the Middle East, the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

He refused to give the exact dates and stages of this trip.

This will be the fifth official visit of Anthony Blinken to Israel since the beginning of the war on October 7, caused by the bloody attack of Hamas on the territory of Israel, and his fourth visit to the region.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also visited the region, as did President Joe Biden early in the conflict, which will enter its fourth month in the coming days.

By sending the US Secretary of State to the region again, the United States intends to keep up the pressure on the Israeli authorities and ensure good relations with the Arab allies united against Israel.

The move comes amid growing fears that the conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas could spill over into the region, especially after a bombing that killed 95 people in Iran on Wednesday and the killing of a second Hamas politician in an airstrike in Lebanon on Tuesday .

US administration officials reiterate that behind-the-scenes pressure is at work when Israel agrees to allow fuel, restore Internet access and open checkpoints into the Gaza Strip, but they also do not hide their disappointment.

The United States is Israel’s main ally and military supporter, but it condemns the extreme positions of some Israeli ministers who demand the return of Jewish settlers to Gaza after the current war and “encourage” the Palestinian population to emigrate.