Middle East latest: Sirens sound across Tel Aviv as projectiles are intercepted near Blinken's hotel

Air raid sirens echoed across Tel Aviv on Wednesday as United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken prepared to end a visit. Smoke, apparently from an intercepted projectile, could be seen in the sky above the hotel where Blinken was staying.

Blinken urged Israel to use its recent tactical victories against Hamas to seek a war-ending deal and bring back dozens of hostages, before leaving Wednesday for Saudi Arabia as part of his 11th visit to the region since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

Both sides appear to be dug in. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to annihilate Hamas and recover dozens of hostages held by the group. Hamas says it will only release the captives in return for a lasting cease-fire, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led militants blew holes in Israel's security fence and stormed in, killing some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting another 250. Israel's offensive in Gaza has killed over 42,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, who do not differentiate between militants and civilians. The war has destroyed large areas of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its population of 2.3 million people.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization postponed the third phase of a polio vaccine campaign in the besieged Gaza Strip, saying the current conditions made it "impossible for families to safely bring their children for vaccination."

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Here's the latest:

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The World Health Organization on Wednesday said it and other aid agencies had to postpone the third phase of a polio vaccine campaign in the besieged Gaza Strip due to the ongoing war there.

The WHO issued a statement saying the decision was made in concert with UNICEF, the United Nations' Palestinian aid agency UNRWA, Palestinian officials and others after the inoculations were to begin Wednesday.

“The current conditions, including ongoing attacks on civilian infrastructure continue to jeopardize people’s safety and movement in northern Gaza, making it impossible for families to safely bring their children for vaccination, and health workers to operate,” a WHO statement said.

It added: “Given that the area currently approved for temporary humanitarian pauses was substantially reduced — now limited only to Gaza City, a significant decrease from the first round — many children in northern Gaza would have missed out on the polio vaccine dose.”

The WHO said this phase of the vaccinations aimed to vaccinate over 119,000 children across northern Gaza. The campaign began in September after Gaza reported its first polio case in 25 years. Health officials have expressed alarm about disease outbreaks as uncollected garbage piles up and the bombing of critical infrastructure sends putrid water flowing through the streets. Polio is spread through fecal matter. Widespread hunger has left people even more vulnerable to illness.

BERLIN — German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called for a diplomatic solution to the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.

Baerbock, upon her arrival Wednesday in Beirut, said that “we must now work with our partners in the USA, Europe and the Arab world to find a viable diplomatic solution that safeguards the legitimate security interests of both Israel and Lebanon.”

The foreign minister warned that “a complete destabilization of the country would be fatal for the most religiously diverse society of all states in the Middle East and also for the entire region.” She also asked all parties involved in the conflict to protect the United Nations peacekeeper troops stationed in the Israeli-Lebanese border region.

Baerbock is on her 12th visit to the region since Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — The five Nordic countries said Wednesday that they are "deeply concerned" by bills introduced to Israel's parliament that, if passed, would prevent the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees from operating in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza.

In early October, an Israeli parliamentary committee approved two bills that would sever Israeli government ties with UNRWA, ban UNRWA activity on Israel territory and strip it of legal immunities. The bills passed preliminary approvals by a large margin but must pass several more readings before they become law.

A joint letter signed by the foreign ministers of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden said that if the U.N. body “would no longer be able to exercise its core tasks” it could further destabilize the situation in the region, "and may fundamentally jeopardize the prospects for a two-state solution.”

In the letter, they “strongly urge Israel to ensure continued and unhindered humanitarian access” to Palestinian refugees for UNRWA.

TEL AVIV, Israel — Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel needs to pursue an “enduring strategic success” after its recent tactical victories against Hamas, urging it to seek a deal to end the war and bring back dozens of hostages.

He spoke to reporters Wednesday before traveling from Israel to Saudi Arabia on his 11th visit to the region since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack triggered the war in Gaza.

The United States hopes to revive cease-fire efforts after the killing of top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in an Israeli military operation in Gaza the previous week. But there’s no indication that either of the warring parties have modified their demands since the talks stalled over the summer. Hamas has said its demands have not changed following Sinwar’s death.

Blinken, who met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials Tuesday, said he had pressed Israel to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza and reiterated his warning that the failure to do so could lead to a reduction in U.S. military aid.

“There’s progress made, which is good, but more progress needs to be made,” on that front, he said.

TEL AVIV, Israel — Air raid sirens echoed across Tel Aviv on Wednesday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken prepared to depart from his hotel to the airport.

The Israeli military said it intercepted two projectiles fired from Lebanon. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Smoke, apparently from one of the interceptions, could be seen in the sky above the hotel where Blinken was staying.

He is on his 11th visit to the region since the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, hoping to renew cease-fire efforts after the killing of top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

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