Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns on Tuesday discussed efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza war, the Egyptian presidency said.
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William Burns, Reuters/Julia Nikhinson
Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns on Tuesday discussed efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza war, the Egyptian presidency said.
"The president affirmed the Egyptian position rejecting the continuation of military operations in the Gaza Strip," the presidency said in a statemet.
Senior U.S. officials were in the region to push for a ceasefire after Hamas made concessions last week, but the Palestinian militant group said a new Israeli assault on Gaza on Monday threatened truce talks at a crucial moment and called for mediators to rein in Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
An Egyptian security delegation will head to Doha on Wednesday "on a mission to bring viewpoints closer between Hamas and Israel in order to reach a truce agreement as soon as possible," Egypt's state-affiliated Al-Qahera News cited a senior source as saying.
Egypt and Qatar have been leading mediating efforts in the nine-month war between Israel and Hamas in hopes of ending the fighting and securing the release of Israeli hostages in exchange of Palestinian prisoners.
Reporting by Mohamed Wali
More than 100 pro-Palestinian activists aboard aid ships bound for Gaza were taken to the Greek island of Crete on Friday after Israeli forces seized their vessels in international waters near Greece, flotilla organisers said.
A senior United Arab Emirates official said on Friday Tehran could not be trusted over any unilateral arrangements it makes for the Strait of Hormuz, in a sign of deep mistrust on all sides as efforts to end the Iran war remained at an impasse.
U.S. President Donald Trump congratulated Ali al-Zaidi on his nomination to be next prime minister of Iraq on Thursday, saying that he looked forward to a highly productive new relationship.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.