Egypt, China Demand Ceasefire in Gaza, Establishment of an Independent Palestinian State

President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (Egyptian Presidency)
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (Egyptian Presidency)
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Egypt, China Demand Ceasefire in Gaza, Establishment of an Independent Palestinian State

President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (Egyptian Presidency)
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt and China agreed on the necessity of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to protect and provide relief to civilians, defuse tension in the region, and mitigate factors of regional instability.
On Sunday, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi received Members of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
Wang is currently on an African tour that will see him also visit Togo, Tunisia, and Ivory Coast.
The meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, senior Chinese officials, and China's Ambassador to Egypt.
Presidential Spokesman Ahmed Fahmy said the Chinese minister handed Sisi a letter from President Xi Jinping, confirming China's commitment to further advancing the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.
The letter valued Egypt's role in consolidating the Middle East's security, stability, and development.
According to the Egyptian statement, the meeting touched on ways to strengthen frameworks of cooperation.
Both sides called to continue joint economic development projects at the bilateral level and within the framework of their membership of the BRICS grouping and the Belt and Road Initiative.
They also exchanged views on regional and international developments, notably the ongoing escalation in the region against the backdrop of the Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip.
Sisi underscored the need to reach a ceasefire in Gaza to protect civilians, provide them with relief from the catastrophic humanitarian situation they have been enduring, defuse tension in the region, and avoid factors aggravating regional instability.
China's Foreign Minister concurred with Egypt's position and valued its internationally recognized role along political and humanitarian tracks.
During the talks, Egypt and China underscored the vital need to comply with international law, reiterating their categorical rejection of individual and collective forced transfer or forced displacement of the Palestinians from their lands.
They also agreed on the necessity to address the root causes of the crisis through a just and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian cause based on the two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian State by the resolutions of international legitimacy.
The two sides stressed the need for the international community to assume its responsibilities to enforce the delivery of relief into the Gaza Strip, in line with the relevant UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.
Later, the Egyptian Foreign Minister held a joint press conference with his Chinese counterpart asserting the necessity of establishing an independent, fully sovereign state of Palestine on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
A joint statement of the two ministers urged an immediate and complete ceasefire and an end to all acts of violence, killing, and targeting of civilians and civilian facilities.
In the statement, Cairo and Beijing called for creating a political horizon for peace between the Israeli and Palestinian sides and coexistence between the two peoples.
China maintains good relations with Israel, but for decades, it has supported the Palestinian cause and called for settling the conflict based on a two-state solution.
The two ministers closely follow security developments in the Red Sea. They expressed concern about the expansion of the conflict in the region and stressed the priority of ensuring the safety and security of navigation in the Red Sea.
Wang later said in a press conference that the Red Sea is an essential international corridor for goods and energy, urging an end to harassment of civilian ships and maintaining the smooth flow of supply chains, production, and the global trade system.
The Chinese official considered the tension in the Red Sea "an embodiment of the external repercussions of the conflict in Gaza."
The Security Council did not authorize any country to use force against Yemen, and it is necessary to avoid fueling the tensions in the Red Sea, said Wang.
The Egyptian minister warned of the dangers of expanding the conflict in the Gaza Strip.
Shoukry warned that the escalation on the Lebanese border and tensions in the Red Sea indicate an expansion of the conflict.

 



Suspected US Airstrikes Kill at Least 6 People in Yemen

Light breaks through the sky as US airstrikes strike a plastic materials factory on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen, 13 April 2025. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Light breaks through the sky as US airstrikes strike a plastic materials factory on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen, 13 April 2025. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
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Suspected US Airstrikes Kill at Least 6 People in Yemen

Light breaks through the sky as US airstrikes strike a plastic materials factory on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen, 13 April 2025. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Light breaks through the sky as US airstrikes strike a plastic materials factory on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen, 13 April 2025. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB

Suspected US airstrikes around Yemen's Houthi-held capital killed at least six people and wounded 26 overnight, the Houthis said Monday as they also claimed shooting down another American MQ-9 Reaper drone.

Since its start nearly a month ago, the intense campaign of US airstrikes under President Donald Trump targeting the Houthis over their attacks on shipping in Mideast waters — related to the Israel-Hamas war — has killed over 120 people, according to casualty figures released Monday by the Houthis' Health Ministry.

Footage aired by the Houthis' al-Masirah satellite news channel showed firefighters spraying water on a raging fire they described as being sparked by the airstrikes. Rubble littered a street as rescuers carried one person away from the site, which the group claimed was a ceramics factory in the Bani Matar neighborhood of Sanaa, the capital.

The US military’s Central Command, which oversees American military operations, did not acknowledge the strikes. That follows a pattern for the command, which now has authorization from the White House to conduct strikes at will in the campaign that began March 15.

The American military also hasn’t been providing any information on targets hit. The White House has said over 200 strikes have been conducted so far.

Houthis claim another American drone shot down

The Houthis separately claimed Sunday night they shot down an MQ-9 Reaper drone over Yemen's Hajjah governorate, which sits to the northwest of the country on the Red Sea on the country's border with Saudi Arabia.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesman, described the downing in a prerecorded video message as the fourth in two weeks by the group. Saree said the Houthis targeted the drone with “a locally manufactured missile.” They have surface-to-air missiles — such as the Iranian missile known as the 358 — capable of downing aircraft.

Iran denies arming the group, though Tehran-manufactured weaponry has been found on the battlefield and in sea shipments heading to Yemen for the Shiite Houthi group despite a United Nations arms embargo.

General Atomics Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes over 40,000 feet (12,100 meters) and remain in the air for over 30 hours. They have been flown by both the US military and the CIA for years over Afghanistan, Iraq and now Yemen.

Central Command said it was aware of “reports” of the drone being shot down, but did not elaborate.

US strikes come as part of monthlong intense campaign

An AP review has found the new US operation against the Houthis under President Donald Trump appears more extensive than that under former President Joe Biden, as Washington moves from solely targeting launch sites to firing at ranking personnel and dropping bombs on cities.

The new campaign of airstrikes started after the Houthis threatened to begin targeting “Israeli” ships again over Israel blocking aid entering the Gaza Strip. The group has loosely defined what constitutes an Israeli ship, meaning many vessels could be targeted.

The Houthis targeted more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of them and killing four sailors from November 2023 until January of this year. They also launched attacks targeting American warships without success.

The US campaign shows no signs of stopping, as the Trump administration has also linked its airstrikes on the Houthis to an effort to pressure Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program.