ULAANBAATAR, Aug 1, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday urged "all parties" in the Middle East to stop "escalatory actions" and achieve a ceasefire in Gaza, after Hamas's political leader was killed in a strike that Iran blamed on Israel.

Achieving peace "starts with a ceasefire, and to get there, it also first requires all parties to talk (and) to stop taking any escalatory actions", Blinken told reporters in Mongolia.