US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to return to the Middle East in a new bid to secure a truce in the Israel-Hamas conflict, AFP reports.

Following a failed attempt to secure a ceasefire in the conflict in the Gaza Strip by the start of Ramazan last week, a new round of negotiations hosted by key mediator Qatar has begun.

On the ground, however, there was no sign of letup in the genocide that has devastated much of the Gaza Strip and forced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to seek refuge in the south of the besieged territory.

Blinked had earlier this week said everyone in Gaza was now suffering “severe levels of acute food insecurity”.

“That’s the first time an entire population has been so classified,” he said during a visit to the Philippines.