Cairo – Arab Canada News

As part of ongoing regional efforts to contain the escalation in the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed today, Wednesday, that a phone call took place between Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Atty and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, during which they discussed coordinating positions to enhance mediation efforts and to stabilize the ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian factions.

According to the official statement issued by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, the call focused on ways to facilitate the entry of humanitarian and medical aid into the sector, ensuring the release of detainees and prisoners, in addition to returning to the understandings of the January 19 agreement, which constitutes a fundamental reference in the course of de-escalation.

Support for reconstruction efforts and stability for Palestinians

The two sides also addressed the necessary steps to create a conducive environment for the reconstruction process in Gaza, praising the success of the "Cairo Conference for Early Recovery," and emphasized the importance of Palestinian stability on their lands, and the need to avoid any measures that could exacerbate the ground situation.

Sisi calls for intensified international efforts

In this context, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi renewed his call to the international community to assume its responsibilities, urging the mobilization of international efforts to stop the bleeding and restore stability, reaffirming Egypt's steadfast position in support of the Palestinian cause and the two-state solution.

New Egyptian proposal to end the crisis

In a notable development, the Hebrew site "Walla" reported that Egypt has proposed a new initiative that includes a comprehensive ceasefire in exchange for the release of all Israeli prisoners, both alive and deceased, in addition to facilitating urgent humanitarian aid to Gaza.

According to the site, citing Arab sources, the plan includes the release of 59 Israeli prisoners over a period of one month to one and a half months, with five of them to be released by the end of next week, which puts the parties before a new test of political flexibility.

Positions of the parties: Complications and mutual demands

While Israel insists on linking any agreement to the disarmament of Hamas and setting a timeline for that, and refuses to withdraw from Gaza before the complete release of prisoners, Hamas, for its part, insists on the necessity of guarantees to end the Israeli military operations and lift the siege.

It is worth noting that Israel had previously proposed overseeing the distribution of aid inside Gaza, but this proposal was rejected by the Palestinian factions and regional supporters.

Egypt proposes a balanced timeline under American sponsorship

Egyptian sources revealed to RT that Cairo is working on crafting a balanced timeline that includes a gradual release of prisoners in exchange for a phased Israeli withdrawal from the sector, with guarantees provided by the United States.

Observers believe that this Egyptian proposal represents a new opportunity to break the state of political and military stalemate, but it faces significant challenges regarding the acceptance of conditions by both parties, amid escalating international pressure to end the war and put an end to the worsening humanitarian disaster in Gaza.