Egyptian, Iranian Foreign Ministers Discuss Bilateral Relations in New York

Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian during their meeting in New York (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian during their meeting in New York (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
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Egyptian, Iranian Foreign Ministers Discuss Bilateral Relations in New York

Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian during their meeting in New York (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian during their meeting in New York (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)

Egypt's Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, received his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, at Egypt's permanent mission to the UN in New York on Wednesday.

According to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, the meeting addressed bilateral ties and explored the foundations and guidelines governing them.

The meeting aimed to develop relations to serve the interests of both the Egyptian and Iranian peoples, founded on principles of mutual respect, good neighborliness, cooperation, and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.

The Iranian Foreign Minister emphasized his country's aspiration to promote its relationship with Egypt, restoring it to its normal path in line with the history and civilization of the two countries.

He highlighted that the meeting is an essential step toward normalizing relations.

The meeting also tackled several regional issues, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said.

Both sides affirmed their aspiration to achieve stability and enhance security in their regional environment.

Shoukry pointed out that the complexity of the region's crises cast dangerous shadows over the stability and living conditions of its people.

He underlined the importance of cooperation with all countries in the region in the face of ongoing instability.

Both ministers agreed to maintain communication and dialogue on various topics of mutual interest at bilateral, regional, and international levels.



WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)

The World Health Organization is sending more than one million polio vaccines to Gaza to be administered over the coming weeks to prevent children being infected after the virus was detected in sewage samples, its chief said on Friday.

"While no cases of polio have been recorded yet, without immediate action, it is just a matter of time before it reaches the thousands of children who have been left unprotected," Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in an opinion piece in Britain's The Guardian newspaper.

He wrote that children under five were most at risk from the viral disease, and especially infants under two since normal vaccination campaigns have been disrupted by more than nine months of conflict.

Poliomyelitis, which is spread mainly through the fecal-oral route, is a highly infectious virus that can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis. Cases of polio have declined by 99% worldwide since 1988 thanks to mass vaccination campaigns and efforts continue to eradicate it completely.

Israel's military said on Sunday it would start offering the polio vaccine to soldiers serving in the Gaza Strip after remnants of the virus were found in test samples in the enclave.

Besides polio, the UN reported last week a widespread increase in cases of Hepatitis A, dysentery and gastroenteritis as sanitary conditions deteriorate in Gaza, with sewage spilling into the streets near some camps for displaced people.