Blinken to travel to Occupied Palestine, Morocco, Algeria

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The US Department of State has announced that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit occupied Palestine including the occupied West Bank, Morocco, and Algeria in the coming days to discuss regional issues not to mention the war in Ukraine.

The department announced, on Thursday, that Blinken's tour, which will run from March 26 to March 30, will begin in “Israel” and the occupied West Bank and end in Algeria.

In a statement, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the top US diplomat will also meet with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Rabat to "discuss regional security and international developments."

Price added that Blinken will “consult with partners on a range of regional and global priorities, including the Russian government’s war on Ukraine, Iran’s destabilizing activities, the Abraham Accords and normalization agreements with Israel, Israeli-Palestinian relations, and preserving the possibility of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, among other topics.”

Blinken’s visit serves US President Joe Biden's attempt to pressure its Middle Eastern allies into the Western-led hysteric sanctions campaign against Russia over its war in Ukraine.

Washington is also negotiating indirectly with Tehran to resurrect the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Meanwhile, “Israel”, US's ally in the region, has constantly opposed the agreement's restoration.

During his visit to “Israel”, Blinken will meet with top Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, before meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, according to Price's statement on Thursday.

“In these meetings, the Secretary will emphasize the importance of strengthening US-Palestinian relations, and advancing freedom, security, and prosperity for the Palestinian people,” Price stressed.

It is worth mentioning that Palestine solidarity activists have condemned Washington’s unconditional support for “Israel” and impunity despite the fact that leading human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have described it as an "apartheid" regime.

In a damning 280-page report, human rights group #AmnestyInternational labels "Israel" apartheid, citing Israeli abuses, including unlawful killings, extensive seizures of #Palestinian land, forcible transfer, drastic movement restrictions, & administrative detention. pic.twitter.com/CjF0SFoc9P

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) February 1, 2022

Amnesty International further documented Israeli crimes and practices against the Palestinian people.

Read More: “It Is Fun to Shoot Palestinians”: Six Former Israeli Soldiers Speak Up

Blinken will travel from “Israel” to Morocco, which normalized relations with the Israeli occupation in 2020.

The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco are among the Arab countries that signed normalization deals with the Israeli occupation, echoing Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s recognition of “Israel” in 1977. The wave of normalization raged Palestinians who considered normalization with Israel as a "stab in the back" to the Palestinian cause. 

These agreements have been orchestrated by US administrations.

The top US diplomat's trip will end in Algeria, where he will meet with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra "to discuss regional security and stability, commercial cooperation, advancing human rights and fundamental freedoms, and other areas of mutual concern."

“During the course of his trip, the Secretary will emphasize to all of the foreign leaders he meets that the United States stands in solidarity with the government and people of Ukraine in the face of the Kremlin’s aggression,” Price said.

“We will continue to work closely with our allies and partners to impose further costs on [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and his enablers if Putin does not change course,” he concluded.