Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President, Abdelfatah al-Sisi.
Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President in the pursuit of diplomatic agreements to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.
One of the points is to release hostages and increase the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President in a meeting attended also by the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shukri, and the head of the country’s intelligence, Abás Kamel.
They discussed “the evolution of intense efforts aimed at achieving a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip,” according to a statement from the Egyptian Presidency.
Egyptian official media released images of Blinken’s arrival in Egypt and his meeting with the country’s president, indicating that the trip is “to analyze the situation in the Gaza Strip (…) and consult with the countries in the region so that the war does not spread.”
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Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President
Additionally, Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President in pursuit of the mediation process to agree on an exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, as well as to increase the entry of aid “to end human suffering” in Gaza.
So far, more than 27,500 people have died since October 7th.
In this regard, Al Sisi conveyed to Blinken “the enormous efforts” Egypt is making for the delivery of aid through the Rafah border crossing, the only one not controlled by Israel connecting the Palestinian enclave with the Sinai Peninsula.
The Egyptian president also emphasized “the fundamental role” of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) on a humanitarian level, after about twenty countries, including the United States, froze their future funds to the organization following accusations against a dozen of its members of having participated in the Hamas attacks on October 7th.
It is worth noting that Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President, who called for “implementing international and UN resolutions related to the crisis” with the aim of achieving “a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue and ensuring sustainable stability” in the Middle East, a scene of growing tension.
Egypt, along with Qatar and the United States, is the main mediator between Israel and Hamas, a movement that is studying a proposal for a ceasefire agreement forged in Paris to release the hostages it holds captive in Gaza in exchange for a cessation of hostilities and the release of Palestinians.
Antony Blinken met with the Egyptian President in the second stop of his new tour of the Middle East, aimed at evaluating with key regional actors the efforts for a ceasefire in Gaza and avoiding the possible expansion of the conflict.
His tour, the fifth since the outbreak of the war in Gaza four months ago, comes amid growing tension over the ongoing Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, as well as following recent bombings by Washington in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
This Tuesday, Blinken will head to Qatar, another key mediator in the conflict, before concluding his tour in Israel and the West Bank, according to the US State Department.
