Egypt has condemned Israel's ongoing assaults against defenseless Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement issued Sunday, the Foreign Ministry called on Israel to stop its policies “of collective punishment against the residents of the Gaza Strip, including siege, starvation, indiscriminate targeting of civilians, and the destruction of infrastructure,” which represent a violation of the provisions of international law and international humanitarian law.
The Ministry also called on Israel to “shoulder its responsibilities as the occupying power, refrain from targeting civilians, and provide urgent aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip.”
Concerning the Israeli plans to launch a ground assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah near the Egyptian border, the Ministry renewed its warning against the dangers of carrying out any military operations in the city, where Palestinian civilians have take refuge as the last safe haven inside Gaza.
“Egypt considers such action, despite the warnings and international rejection, as a disregard for the lives of innocent civilians and a serious violation of international law and humanitarian law,” stated the Ministry.
It also renewed its call to influential international parties and the United Nations Security Council to assume their legal and humanitarian responsibilities by demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
The Foreign Ministry statement then called on these parties to work on preventing the scenario of forcibly displacing Palestinians from Gaza, putting an end to continuous Israeli violations against civilians, and urgently delivering humanitarian aid in all possible ways to the Palestinian enclave.
In a related development, a delegation from the World Health Organization, led by Regional Director of the WHO Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, Dr. Hanan Balkhy, visited Arish city in north Sinai, the humanitarian services center of the Egyptian Red Crescent and WHO in the Al-Sabil neighborhood, in addition to the Rafah border crossing.
Secretary General of North Sinai Governorate Osama el-Ghandour met with the delegation and outlined Egypt’s efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip along with receiving the Palestinians patients and injured for treatment at Egyptian hospitals.
The Egyptian official news agency, MENA, said Balkhy lauded Egypt’s efforts in delivering humanitarian aid to the war-torn Gaza Strip.
“The WHO is committed to providing all the necessary aid and support to the Palestinians in the enclave,” Balkhy added.
