U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken hopes to advance efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and strengthen ties with Egypt when he visits Cairo on Wednesday, his spokesman said, amid concern about escalating Middle East tensions.

A narrow strip of scrubland and sand dunes on the Gaza side of the border with Egypt has emerged as a major obstacle in talks aimed at halting the Israel-Hamas war and freeing scores of hostages

Egypt will not accept any changes to the security arrangements that were in place on its border with Gaza before war broke out between Israel and Hamas last October, the Egyptian foreign minister said on Wednesday.

The Israeli military gave journalists a tour of the barren strip of land on Gaza’s southern border that has become a major obstacle in talks over a cease-fire — and to a nearby, devastated district where troops have been battling militants for months.

The Biden administration had previously withheld some annual funding from Egypt amid scrutiny of its human rights record.

Egypt will not consent to changes in the pre-war security arrangements on its Gaza border, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty declared. Talks focus on Israel's troop presence and ceasefire negotiations as Egypt insists on restoring a Palestinian presence at the Rafah crossing,

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Egypt for talks Thursday including efforts to try to find progress in achieving a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the war in Gaza. Blinken’s schedule includes meetings with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi and Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said in a press conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday that Egypt will not accept any