An Egyptian source said Cairo also rejects any Israeli supervision at the Rafah crossing.
Egypt has rejected the deployment of its forces in the Gaza Strip, according to two high-level sources, the Anadolu news agency reported.
“Egypt rejects the entry of any Egyptian forces into the Gaza Strip,” the state-affiliated Al-Qahera News channel reported, citing one source, the report said.
“Arranging the situation in Gaza after Israel’s ongoing military operation is a Palestinian matter,” it added.
The source reportedly said Cairo informed all parties that the release of Israeli captives and halting Israel’s military offensive “must be realized through a permanent cease-fire and hostage swap deal.”
Israel estimates that around 120 Israeli captives are held by Palestinian Resistance group Hamas in the besieged enclave.
Israel Refuses Egypt, PA Any Role in Operating Rafah Crossing – Report
‘Complete Withdrawal’
Hamas has insisted on a permanent ceasefire as a condition for any potential hostage exchange deal, which the Israeli government opposes.
Another Egyptian source said Cairo rejects any Israeli supervision at the Rafah crossing, reported Anadolu.
“Egypt insists on the complete withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Palestinian side of the crossing,” the source said.
The Al-Qahera News channel, citing a security source, also denied that Egypt has agreed to relocate the Rafah crossing and build a new terminal near the Kerem Shalom crossing.
Last month Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi called for Israel “to withdraw from the city of Rafah,” and for conditions to be created “conducive to the immediate return of the displaced Palestinians,” who were forced to abandon their homes in Gaza due to the war.
Gaza Crisis is ‘Deliberate Outcome of Vindictive War’ by Israel – Egyptian President
Ongoing Genocide
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 37,900 Palestinians have been killed, and 87,060 wounded. Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
All of Gaza’s Health Centers Will Cease Operations in 48 Hours – Health Ministry
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
(Anadolu, PC)
