Egypt, Jordan Agree to Deepen Cooperation in Various Fields

 A photo from a previous meeting between Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II. (Egyptian Presidency)
A photo from a previous meeting between Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II. (Egyptian Presidency)
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Egypt, Jordan Agree to Deepen Cooperation in Various Fields

 A photo from a previous meeting between Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II. (Egyptian Presidency)
A photo from a previous meeting between Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II. (Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi held a telephone conversation on Saturday with Jordan’s King Abdullah II.

According to presidential spokesman Bassam Rady, they agreed to deepen cooperation in different fields and coordinate on regional and international issues.

They also exchanged views and insights on regional and international issues of common interest.

Sisi underscored the importance of exerting further efforts to expand and strengthen areas of bilateral cooperation to maximize the common interests of the two countries and their peoples.

King Abdullah, for his part, commended the fraternal bilateral ties and the ongoing coordination with Sisi and said he looked forward to further for further cooperation.

In early December, the two leaders voiced support to the Palestinians in a joint press statement following their meeting in Cairo.

Their meeting focused on the latest developments in the region, notably in the Palestinian territories.

The leaders agreed on the need to boost their countries’ efforts to provide full support to the Palestinian people and to revive the peace process to reach a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.



Gaza Polio Campaign Starts Well, WHO Says, Despite Israeli Strikes

Palestinian child is vaccinated against polio during the second round of a vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinian child is vaccinated against polio during the second round of a vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Reuters)
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Gaza Polio Campaign Starts Well, WHO Says, Despite Israeli Strikes

Palestinian child is vaccinated against polio during the second round of a vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinian child is vaccinated against polio during the second round of a vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, October 14, 2024. (Reuters)

The World Health Organization said on Tuesday it had been able to start its polio campaign in central Gaza and vaccinate tens of thousands of children despite Israeli strikes in the designated protected zone hours before.

As part of an agreement between the Israeli military and Palestinian group Hamas, humanitarian pauses in the year-long Gaza war had been due to begin early on Monday to reach hundreds of thousands of children.

However, hours before then, the UN humanitarian office said Israeli forces struck tents near al Aqsa hospital, inside in the zone, where it said four people were burned to death.

The UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said one of its schools in the central Gazan city of Nuseirat, intended as a vaccination site, was hit overnight between Sunday and Monday, killing up to 22 people.

WHO spokesperson Tarik Jašarević told a Geneva press briefing that over 92,000 children, or around half of the children targeted for polio vaccines in the central area, had been inoculated on Monday.

"What we have received from colleagues is that the vaccination went without a major issue yesterday, and we hope It will continue the same way," he said.

Other humanitarian agencies have previously voiced concerns about the viability of the polio campaign in northern Gaza, where an Israeli offensive is under way.

Aid groups carried out an initial round of vaccinations last month, after a baby was partially paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus in August, in the first such case in the territory in 25 years.