Blinken to meet Saudi crown prince before heading to Israel

ABI DHABI: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler on Monday (Jan 8) before heading to Israel as part of efforts to stop the Gaza war spiralling into a regional conflict.

Blinken will discuss Red Sea attacks by the Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen, Saudi Arabia's southern neighbour, during his talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Their meeting will also touch on a potential normalisation of ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel after initial discussions were put on hold by the Gaza crisis, a senior official said.

Blinken "emphasised the importance of preventing further spread of the conflict", during talks in Abu Dhabi on Monday with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, a US summary of the meeting said.

"This is a conflict that could easily metastasise, causing even more insecurity and even more suffering," Blinken said on Sunday in Qatar, the previous leg of his tour.

The war in Gaza started with Hamas's unprecedented Oct 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in about 1,140 deaths, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Israel has responded with relentless bombardment and a ground invasion that have killed at least 22,835 people, most of them women and children, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

After his talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed, Blinken is flying to Al Ula, a historic oasis city in western Saudi Arabia.

Yemen's Huthi rebels, vowing solidarity with the Palestinian cause, have launched more than 100 drone and missile attacks on targets in Israel and the Red Sea, disrupting traffic in the key shipping route.

The United States and 11 allies last week warned of unspecified consequences if the attacks continue.

But the situation is tense for Riyadh as it coincides with attempts to settle a long-running war between the Huthis and a Saudi-led international coalition.

Blinken's meeting with the crown prince is also an opportunity to sound out the Saudis on the prospect of an eventual normalisation with Israel, a senior US official said - even if progress appears unlikely while the war continues.

Saudi Arabia, home of Islam's two holiest sites, did not join the handful of Arab countries - including its neighbour the United Arab Emirates - in signing the US-brokered Abraham Accords recognising Israel in 2020.