Israel strikes southern Gaza as Blinken heads to Egypt for talks

Israel bombarded the southern Gaza Strip overnight, as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken prepared to travel to Egypt on Thursday for more talks aimed at containing Israel's war against Hamas.

The diplomat was set to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo, a day after talks with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmud Abbas, who "committed" to reforming the body to potentially reunite Gaza and the occupied West Bank under its leadership after the war, Blinken said.

The Middle East trip, his fourth aimed at preventing the conflict's spread, coincided with a U.N. Security Council resolution on Wednesday demanding an "immediate" end to attacks in the Red Sea by Yemen's Huthi rebels carried out in solidarity with Hamas.

It also comes as Israel was set to face accusations brought by South Africa at the U.N.'s top court on Thursday that it has committed "genocidal" acts in Gaza, charges both Israel and Blinken have dismissed as baseless.

Blinken laid out Gaza's possible future after meeting Palestinian president Abbas in Ramallah and Bahrain's King Hamad in his fourth Middle East tour aimed at preventing the Israel-Hamas war from escalating.

Abbas raised with Blinken the need "to stop the Israeli aggression against Palestinian people" in Hamas-ruled Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where deadly unrest has also surged, said the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

Blinken told Abbas that Washington supports "tangible steps" towards the creation of a Palestinian state — a long-term goal which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right government has opposed.

Blinken reiterated the U.S. position that a Palestinian state must stand alongside Israel, "with both living in peace and security", said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.

As Blinken arrived under tight security at Abbas's headquarters in Ramallah, protesters held up signs reading "Stop the genocide", "Free Palestine" and "Blinken out". Some scuffled with Palestinian security forces in riot gear.

In Bahrain, Blinken said Abbas was "committed" to reforming the Palestinian Authority "so that it can effectively take responsibility for Gaza, so that Gaza and the West Bank can be reunited under a Palestinian leadership".