Blinken calls on Israel to build its ties with Arab countries

[Collection]Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, said Tuesday that Israel had "real opportunities" to strengthen ties with Arab nations, as he sought to calm regional violence arising from the Israel-Hamas war and encourage Israel to alleviate Palestinian suffering in order to improve relations with its West Asian neighbours. Blinken's comments, in meetings with Israeli officials on Tuesday in Tel Aviv, were a reference to his earlier assertion that Saudi Arabia and other countries remained interested in eventually building normal diplomatic relations with Israel.