Buckling Ceasefire in the Gaza Strip: France and Egypt's Demand for Calm
- EU Parties must collaborate to safeguard the balanced implementation of the peace negotiations.
The skyline of Cairo has been shadowsed by the ongoing chaos in the Gaza Strip, where Israel's latest scorch earth offensive after a brief two-month ceasefire has worsened the already dire situation, leaving French President Emmanuel Macron and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi perturbed. In a swift response, both leaders denounced the Israeli attacks as a brutal setback in the quest for peace.
The shreds of tranquility hastily pulled together in the Gaza Strip during January had brought a momentary breath of relief, with the release of countless hostages being held by Hamas and its affiliates. However, the negotiations for a long-lasting agreement bore no fruit, resulting in the resumption of unabated Israeli airstrikes and ground operations on March 18, 2025.
At the helm of diplomacy, France and Egypt condemned the deteriorating conditions and called for an immediate resumption of humanitarian aid to the perished citizens of the Gaza Strip. In line with this initiative, Macron is scheduled to visit Egypt's port city of Al-Arish on Tuesday, a strategic hub for delivering aid to the Palestinian territory. This trilateral summit with Egypt and Jordan aims to bolster the support of the Arab states bordering the chaotic strip.
In a bid to bolster regional security, Macron urged the prevention of forced displacement of Palestinians within the Gaza Strip and urged Israel to halt plans for annexing the coastal region and the West Bank, warning that such actions would confront international law and imperil the safety of the entire Middle East, including that of Israel itself.
The French leader also embraced Egypt's plan for the Gaza Strip's future, which envisions the gradual transfer of control to the Palestinian Authority after the cessation of hostilities, sans displacement of the residents. He underscored Hamas's absence from the strategic future of the strip, emphasizing the necessity of a peaceful resolution centered on the two-state solution.
This political stanceof France is a quiet rebuke to the controversial proposal by US President Donald Trump in February, which ignited international indignation. Trump spearheaded a plan to relocate the approximately two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to neighboring countries such as Egypt and Jordan, and transform the battered coastal strip into a "Riviera of the Middle East."
The thorny Gaza conflict was ignited by an unprecedented offensive by the radical Islamist Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2024. The prolonged conflict, after the spectacular failure of the ceasefire, has led to a humanitarian catastrophe with little food, medicine, and clean water, forcing thousands to flee their homes. The civilian death toll has soared dramatically.
Meanwhile, both Israel and Hamas remain at loggerheads, with skirmishes persisting throughout despite Israel reporting shelling originating from the Gaza Strip. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised a tough response, intensifying military operations against Hamas despite ongoing casualties on both sides.
In a separate development, Foreign Ministers of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel converged in Abu Dhabi to discuss the ongoing conflict. The UAE's Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, stressed the importance of ceasefire and the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip and emphasized the need for a coherent political framework for lasting peace based on the two-state solution. The Emirati Foreign Ministry, however, did not disclose any official statements from the Israeli side regarding this meeting.
- Gaza Strip
- France
- Emmanuel Macron
- Egypt
- Israel
- US President
- West Bank
- Ceasefire
- Cairo
- Palestinian Authority
- Hamas
- IPSC (Israeli-Palestinian Security Council)
- President Emmanuel Macron of France, expressing concern alongside Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has denounced the resumption of Israeli airstrikes and ground operations in the Gaza Strip, urging for an immediate cessation of hostilities and the resumption of humanitarian aid.
- In a show of solidarity, Macron plans to visit Egypt's strategic port city of Al-Arish on Tuesday, an initiative aimed to bolster Arab states' support for the people of the Gaza Strip and the eventual transfer of control to the Palestinian Authority.
- Macron has emphasized the necessity of maintaining the two-state solution and avoiding displacement of Palestinians within the Gaza Strip, a stance that subtly rebukes US President Donald Trump's proposal to relocate Gaza's Palestinian population to neighboring countries like Egypt and Jordan.
