Cairo, Jan 15 (IANS) Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said that it’s time for Israel and Hamas to demonstrate the political will to swiftly reach a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, “which could have been reached several months ago, sparing civilians and innocents from the fate they have faced.”
Abdelatty made the remarks on Tuesday during a joint press conference with Luxembourg’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Xavier Bettel in Cairo, where they discussed regional issues and bilateral ties, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Egyptian foreign minister said that Egypt is working with Qatar and the US to accelerate reaching an Israel-Hamas deal. “We hope that will be soon,” he told reporters.
He pointed out that the anticipated deal “would include the release of Israeli hostages as well as the release of a group of Palestinian detainees and prisoners. It would also ensure full access to humanitarian and medical aid for the Gaza Strip.”
Doha has been hosting negotiations since early January to reach a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, whose fighting has been going on for over 15 months. The talks included delegations from the two warring parties and the three mediators: Qatar, Egypt, and the US.
Abdelatty noted that Egypt is prepared to host an international conference on the reconstruction of Gaza when the circumstances are conducive following a ceasefire.
He reiterated Egypt’s support for the two-state solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Cairo, Doha, and Washington mediated a week-long truce between Israel and Hamas in late November 2023, including a swap between Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages and more humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza. Yet, later mediation efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement have been fruitless.
Hamas said earlier Tuesday that the ongoing Doha talks on a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal have reached their “final stages.” Meanwhile, an Israeli official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that “only final details” remain to be worked out in the deal.
–IANS
int/rs
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
