Egypt said on Saturday it had received positive signals from all parties over a possible extension of the Gaza truce for one or two days. Diaa Rashwan, the head of Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS), said in a statement that the country was holding extensive talks with all parties to reach an agreement over extending the four-day truce, which “means the release of more detainees in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.”
Quick Read
- Positive Signals for Truce Extension: Egypt reported receiving positive responses from all involved parties regarding the potential extension of the Gaza truce for one or two additional days.
- Egypt’s Mediation Efforts: Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt’s State Information Service, stated that Egypt is conducting extensive talks with all parties to extend the four-day truce, which would facilitate the release of more detainees in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
- Sissi’s Remarks on Israel-Palestinian Peace Talks: Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, during a news conference with the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium, suggested that reviving the Israel-Palestinian peace process might not be necessary. Instead, he called for international recognition of a Palestinian state.
- Proposal for a Demilitarized Palestinian State: Sissi proposed the recognition of a demilitarized Palestinian state and its inclusion in the United Nations, stating that this would demonstrate seriousness in addressing the conflict.
- Role of International Forces: He mentioned that international forces would ensure the demilitarization of the proposed Palestinian state.
- Context of Gaza Conflicts: Sissi pointed to the high civilian death toll in successive Gaza conflicts, attributing these wars to the failure of political resolutions to meet Palestinian aspirations.
- Current Truce and Hostage Exchange: His remarks coincided with the first day of a truce between Israel and Hamas, which involves the release of 50 Israeli hostages by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Reuters has the story:
Egypt says it received ‘positive signals’ over possible extension of Gaza truce
Newslooks- CAIRO (Reuters)
Egypt said on Saturday it had received positive signals from all parties over a possible extension of the Gaza truce for one or two days.
Diaa Rashwan, the head of Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS), said in a statement that the country was holding extensive talks with all parties to reach an agreement over extending the four-day truce, which “means the release of more detainees in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.”
Egypt’s Sissi says Israeli-PA peace talks not needed, instead calls for recognition of Palestinian state
Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, Egyptian President, calls on the international community to recognize a Palestinian state, which he says would have to be demilitarized.
During a joint news conference with the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium in Cairo, Sissi says reviving the process aimed at ending the Israel-Palestinian conflict “may not be what is required.”
“The results of this path faltering for 30 years tells us that we must” adopt a different approach, he says.
This would entail “the recognition of the Palestinian state by the international community and bringing it into the United Nations… This would show seriousness,” Sissi adds. He clarifies that the Palestinian state would be demilitarized and that international forces will work to ensure this.
He points to the high civilian death toll in successive Gaza conflicts, saying the wars erupted because the “political horizons for resolving the Palestinian cause always failed” to fulfill the Palestinians’ aspirations.
“We said that we are ready for this state to be demilitarised, and there can also be guarantees of forces, whether NATO forces, United Nations forces, or Arab or American forces, until we achieve security for both states, the nascent Palestinian state and the Israeli state,” el-Sisi said on Friday during a joint news conference in Cairo with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo.
A political resolution which calls for a Palestinian state based on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, has remained out of reach, el-Sisi added.
Arab nations have rejected suggestions that an Arab force could provide security in the Gaza Strip after the end of Israel’s current military operation there against the Palestinian group Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told reporters in London this week that Arab states would not want to go into a Gaza Strip that could be turned into a “wasteland” by Israel’s military offensive.
“What are the circumstances under which any of us would want to go and be seen as the enemy and be seen as having come to clean up Israel’s mess?” he said.
Sissi’s remarks come on the first day of a truce between Israel and Hamas, to be accompanied by the release of 50 Israeli hostages abducted on October 7 by Hamas, in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Shoring up support for an international peace conference
The Spanish prime minister, whose new government was sworn in earlier this month, is visiting the region alongside his Belgian counterpart. Their two countries hold the current and upcoming rotating presidencies of the Council of the European Union, respectively.
Sanchez has been trying to shore up momentum for an international peace conference aimed at securing the establishment of a “viable” Palestinian state, he told Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
Last week, Sanchez said a Union for the Mediterranean summit in Barcelona on November 27-28 would be an “ideal place” to relaunch Israeli-Palestinian dialogue as the two sides would “sit on an equal footing” there.
Both Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), which governs limited parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, are members of the Mediterranean grouping along with neighbors Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Syria.
Later on Friday, Sanchez and de Croo visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, currently the only one providing access to the besieged enclave.
De Croo called on Israel to open more of Gaza’s crossings “because innocent civilians are suffering and they need help.”
Sanchez said during the visit to Rafah that the current four-day truce in Gaza is not enough and that a permanent ceasefire was needed.
Combat between Israeli troops and Hamas fighters halted on Friday for the first time in seven weeks before the planned release of civilian hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
The fighting erupted on October 7 when Hamas carried out an attack on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials.
Israel has responded with a devastating assault on Gaza, killing more than 15,000 people, including more than 6,000 children, according to Palestinian authorities.
