Blinken urges Israel to seek enduring deal, as officials say a limited cease-fire has been discussed

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Israel needs to pursue an “enduring strategic success” in Gaza after its tactical victories against Hamas, urging it to seek a deal that would end the war and bring back dozens of hostages.

He spoke before traveling from Israel to Saudi Arabia on his 11th visit to the region since the war began. Air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv shortly before his departure as Israel intercepted two projectiles fired from Lebanon — the latest in Israel's war with Hezbollah — and a puff of smoke could be seen in the sky from Blinken's hotel.

“Israel has achieved most of the strategic objectives when it comes to Gaza," Blinken told reporters before boarding his plane. “Now is the time to turn those successes into an enduring strategic success.”

“There really are two things left to do: Get the hostages home and bring the war to an end with an understanding of what will follow,” he said.

Meanwhile, officials with the U.S., Israel and Egypt confirmed that a proposal for a limited cease-fire and hostage release has been discussed in recent days.

The United States sees a new opportunity to revive cease-fire efforts after the killing of top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israeli forces in Gaza last week. But there’s no indication that the warring parties have modified their demands since talks stalled over the summer.

There was also no immediate sign of a breakthrough after Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials on Tuesday.

Israel blamed the failure of talks on Sinwar's hard-line stance, but Hamas says its demands for a lasting cease-fire, full Israeli withdrawal and the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners have not changed. Hamas blamed the failure of the talks on Israel's demand for a lasting military presence in parts of Gaza.

Egypt has suggested the possibility of a short pause in fighting in which Hamas would release a handful of hostages and humanitarian aid deliveries would be increased, especially in northern Gaza, an Egyptian official told The Associated Press.

The official, who was not authorized to brief media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Egypt and fellow mediator Qatar had discussed the idea with the United States but it was not yet a firm proposal.

A senior State Department official confirmed that a proposal for a limited hostage release has been discussed in recent days but that no determination had been made, even after Blinken's meetings with Israeli officials and families of the hostages on Tuesday.

An Israeli official said Israel's Security Cabinet had discussed an Egyptian initiative centered on a 12-day cease-fire and the release of six hostages. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door talks.

There was no immediate comment from Hamas, which has rejected such ideas in the past, saying it is intent on ending the war. It is still holding around 100 hostages captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war, around a third of whom are believed to be dead.

Israel has dramatically reduced the amount of humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza as it wages another major operation in the territory's hard-hit north.

Blinken reiterated a warning that hindering humanitarian aid could force the U.S. to scale back the crucial military support it has provided to Israel since the war began. “There’s progress made, which is good, but more progress needs to be made," he told reporters, without elaborating.

The U.N. humanitarian office says Israel has severely restricted aid operations since the start of its offensive in Jabaliya, a densely populated urban refugee camp in northern Gaza.

It said one critical mission, to rescue around 40 people trapped in the rubble in Jabaliya, had been repeatedly denied since Friday. Col. Elad Goren, a senior official with the Israeli military body that oversees civilian affairs in Gaza, said he was not aware of the request.

Speaking to reporters, Goren acknowledged disruptions in aid to the north in the first half of October but said they were related to the Jewish holidays and troop movements. He said people who were not evacuating Jabaliya had enough assistance from previous months to get by.

The U.N. estimates that 60,000 people have fled to Gaza City since the start of the operation in Jabaliya, the latest in a series of mass displacements.

Northern Gaza, including Gaza City, was the first target of Israel's ground operation and has been encircled by Israeli forces since late last year. Most of the population heeded Israeli warnings to flee to southern Gaza early in the war, but an estimated 400,000 people have stayed.

The north has been more heavily destroyed than other areas of Gaza, with entire neighborhoods obliterated. Israel has prevented Palestinians who fled the north from returning to their homes, a key demand from Hamas in the cease-fire talks.

The renewed offensive in the north has raised fears among Palestinians that Israel intends to implement a plan proposed by former generals in which civilians would be ordered to leave the north and anyone remaining would be starved out or killed.

Far-right ministers in Netanyahu's Cabinet say Israel should remain in Gaza and re-establish Jewish settlements there.

Blinken said the U.S. officials “fully reject” any Israeli reoccupation of Gaza and that it was not the policy of the Israeli government.

The State Department official said Blinken questioned Netanyahu and members of his government about the so-called Generals' Plan. The Israelis denied having such a plan and said the perception of it was damaging, the official said. The official said the Americans pressed the Israelis to publicly distance themselves from it.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted another 250 when they stormed into southern Israel a year ago.

Israel’s offensive has killed over 42,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who don’t distinguish combatants from civilians but say more than half the dead are women and children. It has displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, forcing hundreds of thousands into squalid tent camps.

Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Julia Frankel in Jerusalem contributed.

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

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with members of the media as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he departs for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he departs for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken looks as he arrives at Ben Gurion International Airport before departing for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system fires to intercept as air raid sirens sound in Tel Aviv, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system fires to intercept as air raid sirens sound in Tel Aviv, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he departs for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

A group of Buddhist monks and their rescue dog are striding single file down country roads and highways across the South, captivating Americans nationwide and inspiring droves of locals to greet them along their route.

In their flowing saffron and ocher robes, the men are walking for peace. It's a meditative tradition more common in South Asian countries, and it's resonating now in the U.S., seemingly as a welcome respite from the conflict, trauma and politics dividing the nation.

Their journey began Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, and is scheduled to end in mid-February in Washington, D.C., where they will ask Congress to recognize Buddha’s day of birth and enlightenment as a federal holiday. Beyond promoting peace, their highest priority is connecting with people along the way.

“My hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace,” said the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the group’s soft-spoken leader who is making the trek barefoot. He teaches about mindfulness, forgiveness and healing at every stop.

Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Documenting their journey on social media, they — and their dog, Aloka — have racked up millions of followers online. On Saturday, thousands thronged in Columbia, South Carolina, where the monks chanted on the steps of the State House and received a proclamation from the city's mayor, Daniel Rickenmann.

At their stop Thursday in Saluda, South Carolina, Audrie Pearce joined the crowd lining Main Street. She had driven four hours from her village of Little River, and teared up as Pannakara handed her a flower.

“There’s something traumatic and heart-wrenching happening in our country every day,” said Pearce, who describes herself as spiritual, but not religious. “I looked into their eyes and I saw peace. They’re putting their bodies through such physical torture and yet they radiate peace.”

Hailing from Theravada Buddhist monasteries across the globe, the 19 monks began their 2,300 mile (3,700 kilometer) trek at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth.

Their journey has not been without peril. On Nov. 19, as the monks were walking along U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas, their escort vehicle was hit by a distracted truck driver, injuring two monks. One of them lost his leg, reducing the group to 18.

This is Pannakara's first trek in the U.S., but he's walked across several South Asian countries, including a 112-day journey across India in 2022 where he first encountered Aloka, an Indian Pariah dog whose name means divine light in Sanskrit.

Then a stray, the dog followed him and other monks from Kolkata in eastern India all the way to the Nepal border. At one point, he fell critically ill and Pannakara scooped him up in his arms and cared for him until he recovered. Now, Aloka inspires him to keep going when he feels like giving up.

“I named him light because I want him to find the light of wisdom,” Pannakara said.

The monk's feet are now heavily bandaged because he's stepped on rocks, nails and glass along the way. His practice of mindfulness keeps him joyful despite the pain from these injuries, he said.

Still, traversing the southeast United States has presented unique challenges, and pounding pavement day after day has been brutal.

“In India, we can do shortcuts through paddy fields and farms, but we can’t do that here because there are a lot of private properties,” Pannakara said. “But what’s made it beautiful is how people have welcomed and hosted us in spite of not knowing who we are and what we believe.”

In Opelika, Alabama, the Rev. Patrick Hitchman-Craig hosted the monks on Christmas night at his United Methodist congregation.

He expected to see a small crowd, but about 1,000 people showed up, creating the feel of a block party. The monks seemed like the Magi, he said, appearing on Christ’s birthday.

“Anyone who is working for peace in the world in a way that is public and sacrificial is standing close to the heart of Jesus, whether or not they share our tradition,” said Hitchman-Craig. “I was blown away by the number of people and the diversity of who showed up.”

After their night on the church lawn, the monks arrived the next afternoon at the Collins Farm in Cusseta, Alabama. Judy Collins Allen, whose father and brother run the farm, said about 200 people came to meet the monks — the biggest gathering she’s ever witnessed there.

“There was a calm, warmth and sense of community among people who had not met each other before and that was so special,” she said.

Long Si Dong, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth temple, said the monks, when they arrive in Washington, plan to seek recognition of Vesak, the day which marks the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha, as a national holiday.

“Doing so would acknowledge Vesak as a day of reflection, compassion and unity for all people regardless of faith,” he said.

But Pannakara emphasized that their main goal is to help people achieve peace in their lives. The trek is also a separate endeavor from a $200 million campaign to build towering monuments on the temple’s 14-acre property to house the Buddha’s teachings engraved in stone, according to Dong.

The monks practice and teach Vipassana meditation, an ancient Indian technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. It focuses on the mind-body connection — observing breath and physical sensations to understand reality, impermanence and suffering. Some of the monks, including Pannakara, walk barefoot to feel the ground directly and be present in the moment.

Pannakara has told the gathered crowds that they don't aim to convert people to Buddhism.

Brooke Schedneck, professor of religion at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, said the tradition of a peace walk in Theravada Buddhism began in the 1990s when the Venerable Maha Ghosananda, a Cambodian monk, led marches across war-torn areas riddled with landmines to foster national healing after civil war and genocide in his country.

“These walks really inspire people and inspire faith,” Schedneck said. “The core intention is to have others watch and be inspired, not so much through words, but through how they are willing to make this sacrifice by walking and being visible.”

On Thursday, Becki Gable drove nearly 400 miles (about 640 kilometers) from Cullman, Alabama, to catch up with them in Saluda. Raised Methodist, Gable said she wanted some release from the pain of losing her daughter and parents.

“I just felt in my heart that this would help me have peace,” she said. “Maybe I could move a little bit forward in my life.”

Gable says she has already taken one of Pannakara’s teachings to heart. She’s promised herself that each morning, as soon as she awakes, she’d take a piece of paper and write five words on it, just as the monk prescribed.

“Today is my peaceful day.”

Freelance photojournalist Allison Joyce contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," get lunch Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Aloka rests with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

A sign is seen greeting the Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Supporters pray with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Supporters watch Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

A Buddhist monk ties a prayer bracelet around the wrist of Josey Lee, 2-months-old, during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara leads other buddhist monks in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Audrie Pearce greets Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," arrive in Saluda, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," are seen with their dog, Aloka, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)