The Latest | Blinken in Israel to tell its leaders 'the time is now' for a cease-fire in Gaza

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel for meetings with Israeli leaders and has told the country’s ceremonial president that “the time is now” for a cease-fire deal in the war in Gaza

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Israel on Wednesday for meetings with Israeli leaders and told the country’s ceremonial president that “the time is now” for a cease-fire deal in the war in Gaza.

This is Blinken's seventh visit since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out in October. He is trying to advance a truce that would free hostages held by Gaza's Hamas militants in exchange for a halt to the fighting. Palestinian prisoners are also expected to be released as part of the deal.

On Tuesday, Blinken said that Israel plans on opening a major humanitarian aid crossing into hard-hit northern Gaza. Israel's war against Hamas has flattened huge swaths of Gaza's north, and famine is imminent for the hundreds of thousands of civilians who remain there.

Blinken returned to the Middle East this week to advance cease-fire negotiations as the talks appear to be gaining momentum.

Nearly seven months of Israeli bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza have killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and sparked a humanitarian catastrophe.

The Israel-Hamas war was sparked by the unprecedented Oct. 7 raid into southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250 hostages. Israel says the militants are still holding around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.

Currently:

— Netanyahu vows to invade Rafah ‘with or without a deal’ as cease-fire talks with Hamas continue.

— Police clear pro-Palestinian protesters from Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall.

— A Portuguese-flagged ship is hit far in Arabian Sea, raising concerns over Houthi rebel capabilities.

— The top United Nations court rejects Nicaragua’s request for Germany to halt aid to Israel.

— Migration agency chief warns that even more Syrians will leave Lebanon as donors cut back on aid.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Here's the latest:

BLINKEN IN ISRAEL TO PRESS THAT ‘THE TIME IS NOW’ FOR A CEASE-FIRE DEAL

TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was meeting with Israeli leaders on Wednesday, telling the country’s ceremonial president that “the time is now” for a cease-fire deal.

Blinken has blamed Hamas for any delay is getting a deal off the ground.

“We are determined to get a cease-fire that brings the hostages home and to get it now, and the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” he said.

Blinken visited key regional leaders in Saudi Arabia and Jordan before arriving to Israel. He met Israeli President Isaac Herzog and was set to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later. According to the State Department, he will meet also with families of the hostages as well as visit an Israeli port where aid is entering for shipment to Gaza.

The emerging deal between Israel and Hamas appears to be gaining steam but a key sticking point remains over whether the war will end as part of the agreement, a demand Hamas has stuck to and which Israel rejects.