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Egypt, Qatar Reject Attempts to Liquidate Palestinian Cause

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Egyptian Presidency)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Egyptian Presidency)
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Egypt, Qatar Reject Attempts to Liquidate Palestinian Cause

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Egyptian Presidency)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt and Qatar rejected any attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause at the expense of the Palestinian people or regional countries and attempts at forced displacement.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi received the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, at the presidential palace on Friday and held a session of talks.

Egyptian presidency spokesman Ahmed Fahmy stated that the two leaders agreed to continue activating the various frameworks of cooperation and mechanisms of consultation and coordination at all levels between the two countries.

- Protection of civilians

The “Sisi-Tamim Summit” in Cairo discussed the Israeli military escalation in the Gaza Strip and the subsequent regional challenges that push the region into dangerous and uncalculated directions.

The two leaders discussed the best ways to protect innocent civilians in Gaza and to stop the bloodshed.

The Egyptian Presidency’s statement confirmed that they reviewed the intensive efforts aimed at achieving a ceasefire and sustaining the delivery of humanitarian aid in quantities that meet the needs of the Palestinian people in Gaza.

They confirmed rejection of any attempts to liquidate the Palestinian issue at the expense of the Palestinian people or the countries of the region, as well as attempts at forced displacement.

The spokesman said the two sides confirmed continuing consultations to stop the current escalation, reduce the suffering of civilians, and stop the bloodshed of the Palestinian people. They aimed it would lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state under the international legitimacy references and the achievement of just peace in the region.

- Cessation of military actions

Egypt continues its international and Arab efforts to stop the escalation in the Gaza Strip.

The Egyptian Ambassador to Hungary, Mohamed el-Shinawy, along with the ambassadors of Morocco, Qatar, and Palestine and on behalf of the Arab ambassadors accredited to Hungary, met Hungarian Speaker László Kover and other officials. They discussed the war in Gaza and its developments.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry stated that the Arab ambassadors stressed the necessity of immediately stopping military actions carried out by Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians.

They asserted the need to ensure the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip without any restrictions.

Israel must assume its obligations under international humanitarian law as an occupying state, they asserted.

The Arab ambassadors stressed the Arab countries’ rejection of Israel’s systematic policies to displace the Palestinians from Gaza, impose a fait accompli, and target civilian infrastructure, including homes, hospitals, schools, and places of worship.

They pointed out the importance of starting a political process that led to the establishment of a Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

- Humanitarian aid

Meanwhile, the second Saudi relief plane arrived at el-Arish International Airport in Egypt, carrying 35 tons of relief aid, including food and shelter materials, to be transported to those affected in the Gaza Strip.

The assistance is part of the fundraising campaign launched by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to assist the Palestinian people in Gaza, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

The agency said Friday that the aid comes within the framework of Saudi Arabia’s historical role of supporting the Palestinian people in times of crisis.

The first Saudi relief plane arrived at El-Arish International Airport on Thursday, carrying 35 tons of relief aid, including food and shelter materials, which will be transported to those affected inside the Gaza Strip.

Friday morning, the Palestinian Red Crescent and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) received 65 trucks of humanitarian aid that crossed into the Gaza Strip from the Rafah crossing.

The official spokesman for North Sinai Governorate, Mohammad Salim Salam, said the 821 trucks entered Gaza from the Rafah crossing as of Friday, according to the German News Agency.

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Arab World

A Blast in Gaza Wounds Soldier and Israel Accuses Hamas of Ceasefire Violation

A woman sits next to her tent on an alley of a makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A woman sits next to her tent on an alley of a makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
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A Blast in Gaza Wounds Soldier and Israel Accuses Hamas of Ceasefire Violation

A woman sits next to her tent on an alley of a makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A woman sits next to her tent on an alley of a makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

An explosive device detonated in Gaza on Wednesday, injuring one Israeli soldier and prompting Israel to accuse Hamas of violating the US-backed ceasefire. It was the latest incident to threaten the tenuous truce that has held since Oct. 10 as each side accuses the other of violations.

The blast came as Hamas met with Turkish officials in Ankara to discuss the second stage of the ceasefire. Though the agreement has mostly held, its progress has slowed, The AP news reported.

All but one of the 251 hostages taken in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war have been released, alive or dead, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees. The ceasefire's second phase has even bigger challenges: the deployment of an international stabilization force, a technocratic governing body for Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas and further Israeli troop withdrawals from the territory.

Israel vows to ‘respond accordingly’ Israel's military said the explosive detonated beneath a military vehicle as soldiers were “dismantling” militant infrastructure in the southern city of Rafah. The lightly injured soldier was taken to a hospital, the military said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement called the incident a violation of the ceasefire and said Israel would "respond accordingly.”

Israel previously launched strikes in Gaza in response to alleged ceasefire violations. On Oct. 19, Israel said two soldiers were killed by Hamas fire and it responded with a series of strikes that killed over 40 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

Hamas accuses Israel of violating the ceasefire by not allowing enough aid into the territory and continuing to strike civilians. Palestinian health officials say over 370 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the truce.

On Friday, Israeli troops fired over the ceasefire line in northern Gaza, killing at least five Palestinians, including a baby, according to a local hospital that received the casualties.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with a Hamas delegation led by Khalil al-Haya to discuss the ceasefire's second phase, according to ministry officials.

Fidan reaffirmed Türkiye's efforts to defend the rights of Palestinians and outlined ongoing efforts to address shelter and other humanitarian needs in Gaza, the officials said.

The Hamas delegation said they had fulfilled the ceasefire’s conditions but that Israel’s continued attacks were blocking progress toward the next stage. They also asserted that 60% of the trucks allowed into Gaza were carrying commercial goods rather than aid.

According to the officials, the meeting also discussed reconciliation efforts between the Palestinian factions and the situation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, stressing that Israel’s actions there were “unacceptable.”

Arab World

Algeria Passes Law Declaring French Colonisation a Crime

Members of the committee drafting the law criminalizing colonialism (File Photo/ Algerian Parliament)
Members of the committee drafting the law criminalizing colonialism (File Photo/ Algerian Parliament)
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Algeria Passes Law Declaring French Colonisation a Crime

Members of the committee drafting the law criminalizing colonialism (File Photo/ Algerian Parliament)
Members of the committee drafting the law criminalizing colonialism (File Photo/ Algerian Parliament)

Algeria's parliament unanimously approved on Wednesday a law declaring France's colonisation of the country a crime, and demanding an apology and reparations.

Standing in the chamber, lawmakers wearing scarves in the colors of the national flag chanted "long live Algeria" as they applauded the passage of the bill, which states that France holds "legal responsibility for its colonial past in Algeria and the tragedies it caused".

The vote comes as the two countries are embroiled in a major diplomatic crisis, and analysts say that while Algeria's move is largely symbolic, it is still politically significant, AFP reported.

Parliament speaker Brahim Boughali told the APS state news agency before the vote that it would send "a clear message, both internally and externally, that Algeria's national memory is neither erasable nor negotiable".

The legislation lists the "crimes of French colonisation", including nuclear tests, extrajudicial killings, "physical and psychological torture", and the "systematic plundering of resources".

It states that "full and fair compensation for all material and moral damages caused by French colonisation is an inalienable right of the Algerian state and people".

France's rule over Algeria from 1830 until 1962 remains a sore spot in relations between the two countries.

The period was marked by mass killings and large-scale deportations, all the way up to the bloody war of independence from 1954-1962.

Algeria says the war killed 1.5 million people, while French historians put the death toll lower at 500,000 in total, 400,000 of them Algerian.

French President Emmanuel Macron has previously acknowledged the colonisation of Algeria as a "crime against humanity", but has stopped short of offering an apology.

Asked last week about the vote, French foreign ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux said he would not comment on "political debates taking place in foreign countries".

Hosni Kitouni, a researcher in colonial history at the University of Exeter in the UK, said that "legally, this law has no international scope and therefore is not binding for France".

But "its political and symbolic significance is important: it marks a rupture in the relationship with France in terms of memory," he said.

Arab World

Türkiye, Hamas Discuss Gaza Ceasefire Deal’s Second Phase, Turkish Source Says

Palestinian children play next to tents in a makeshift camp for displaced people set up on the beach in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (AP)
Palestinian children play next to tents in a makeshift camp for displaced people set up on the beach in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (AP)
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Türkiye, Hamas Discuss Gaza Ceasefire Deal’s Second Phase, Turkish Source Says

Palestinian children play next to tents in a makeshift camp for displaced people set up on the beach in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (AP)
Palestinian children play next to tents in a makeshift camp for displaced people set up on the beach in Gaza City, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (AP)

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Wednesday ​met with Hamas political bureau officials in Ankara to discuss the ceasefire in Gaza and advancing the ‌agreement to ‌its ‌second ⁠phase, ​a ‌Turkish Foreign Ministry source said according to Reuters.

The source said the Hamas officials told Fidan that they had fulfilled ⁠their requirements as ‌part of the ‍ceasefire ‍deal, but that Israel's ‍continued targeting of Gaza aimed to prevent the agreement from ​moving to the next phase.

The Hamas members ⁠also said humanitarian aid entering Gaza was not sufficient, and that goods like medication, equipment for housing, and fuel were needed, the source ‌added.