Egypt has affirmed that the US use of the veto to prevent a ceasefire in Gaza is unjustified.
During a meeting between Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his US counterpart Antony Blinken on Thursday on the sidelines of the G20 meetings in Brazil, Shoukry expressed Egypt’s regret and rejection of the continued inability of the Security Council to explicitly call for a ceasefire due to the repeated use of the US veto.
Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that the meeting discussed the developments related to the situation in the Gaza Strip, where the Egyptian Foreign Minister reiterated the need for a complete ceasefire as the best guarantee to stop the bloodshed of civilians, reduce the escalation associated with the crisis, and start any serious dialogue on the future of dealing with the Palestinian issue.
Shoukry told his US counterpart that Egypt is closely monitoring the development of Israeli military operations and warns of the serious risks resulting from any large-scale attack on the Palestinian Rafah, due to the risks of a real humanitarian catastrophe as a result of the presence of about one and a quarter million people in this narrow strip, which is the only safe area in the sector.
Rejection of Displacement
The Egyptian Foreign Minister reiterated his country’s categorical rejection of any plans or measures that would lead to the displacement of Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip, considering that this would practically lead to the liquidation of the Palestinian issue and would also pose a threat to the national security of neighboring countries and an additional factor of instability in the region.
He stressed the need to put pressure on the Israeli government to fully implement Security Council Resolution 2720 to ensure the facilitation of the entry of humanitarian aid into the sector and to avoid the obstacles imposed by Israel.
Shoukry called for supporting the mission of the United Nations Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs and Reconstruction, and enabling the mechanism provided for in the Security Council resolution to operate inside the Gaza Strip. He also stressed the importance of the role of UNRWA in receiving and distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza, as it is the only agency that has the capacity to operate efficiently on the ground under the current security and humanitarian conditions. He called for reconsidering the re-funding of the agency’s activities as soon as possible.
The two ministers discussed the course of the ongoing diplomatic efforts to reach a deal for the exchange of prisoners and detainees that would allow a truce for several weeks. They also agreed to continue coordination in the coming period to support the mediation efforts undertaken by Egypt in this regard.
