Africa

 Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called Thursday for international efforts to push for an agreement that would end Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip. The move came during a phone call he received from his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, according to a statement from the Egyptian Presidency. The statement said that El-Sisi, during his conversation with Macron, highlighted Egypt’s “intensive communications” with all parties to halt the escalation in the region and avoid slipping into “a new cycle of uncalculated conflict,” which “threatens to spark a full-scale regional confrontation.” He stressed the importance of international efforts to press forward towards a cease-fire agreement in Gaza, as the continuation of the war in the region is the “main driver” of the current escalation. According to the statement, the two presidents agreed to intensify efforts and coordination in the coming period to ensure the security and stability of the region and to prevent the expansion of the conflict, which threatens the welfare of the region’s people. In a related context, El-Sisi held a phone call with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in which he reviewed the latest Egyptian efforts to end the war in Gaza and the exchange of detainees, according to a second statement from the Egyptian Presidency. He emphasized the “priority of delivering humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, alleviating their suffering and advancing a political process based on the two-state solution.” El-Sisi also expressed Cairo’s desire to strengthen bilateral relations and increase trade between the two countries. The region is currently gripped by fears of war, particularly amid threats of military retaliation by Lebanon’s Hezbollah group following the assassination of its top commander, Fuad Shukr, in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut on July 30 and Iran’s threats to retaliate after the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in the capital Tehran on July 31, an attack attributed to Tel Aviv. The escalation comes against the backdrop of an Israeli onslaught against the Gaza Strip which has killed nearly 39,700 people since last October following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas. Tel Aviv is continuing the war, ignoring the UN Security Council’s resolution to immediately cease hostilities, as well as the International Court of Justice’s orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.