Ashraf AboArafe
Dr. Badr Abdel Aati, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs, participated in the ministerial meeting on the Palestinian issue and the implementation of the two-state solution, which was held in Madrid on Friday, September 13.
Ambassador Tamim Khalaf, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration expressed during the meeting his appreciation for the recent recognition of the Palestinian state by Spain, Norway, Ireland and Slovenia, which contributes in a practical way to defending the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to self-determination. Dr. Abdel Aati also discussed the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, and the daily Israeli violations of international humanitarian law, including by targeting Palestinian civilians.
Ambassador Khilaf added that Minister Abdel Aati expressed Egypt’s support for all efforts aimed at ensuring the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, stressing that it is time for the international community to undertake its efforts to stop hostilities and ensure full respect for international law and the entry of humanitarian aid quickly, safely and without obstacles.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration was also keen to express Egypt’s rejection of the Israeli military presence in the Philadelphi Corridor and the Palestinian side of the Rafah Crossing, and the decrease in the rate of aid entry into the Gaza Strip, at a time when Israel is using hunger as a weapon against the Palestinians and refusing to fully operate its crossings to the Strip to ensure the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza in accordance with its legal obligations as an occupying power, stressing that this presence comes for political purposes, as it aims to prevent the return of the legitimate Palestinian Authority to Gaza, and undermine the mediation efforts undertaken by Egypt, Qatar and the United States to reach an agreement for a ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners and detainees. The official spokesman explained that Dr. Badr Abdel-Ati also stressed Egypt’s determination to continue engaging with all parties in the international community to implement the two-state solution based on the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the lines of June 4, 1967, stressing that recognition of that state and its full membership in the United Nations are a major step towards achieving this goal, and that recognition of that state is a right for the Palestinian people and a duty for the international community.
