Egypt Denies Reports about Israeli Military Operations on Its Border with Gaza

Israeli artillery fires on targets in the Gaza Strip (EPA)
Israeli artillery fires on targets in the Gaza Strip (EPA)
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Egypt Denies Reports about Israeli Military Operations on Its Border with Gaza

Israeli artillery fires on targets in the Gaza Strip (EPA)
Israeli artillery fires on targets in the Gaza Strip (EPA)

Egypt denied on Saturday reports about an Israeli ground operation starting along the border through the Kerm Abu Salem crossing to the Philadelphia Axis between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, Al Qahera News reported.
Earlier, Israeli media outlets reported tensions between Egypt and Israel, saying the Israeli army had launched operations near the Egyptian border.
The Israeli Walla news website said Israeli tanks have begun a ground operation from the Karm Abu Salem, in the southern Strip of Gaza, to the Rafah crossing along the axis of the so-called Philadelphia Route.
According to the Israeli report, Tel Aviv sought to avoid acting on this axis to prevent provoking the Egyptian side.
The expansion of Israeli military operations south of Gaza, especially on the Philadelphia axis is raising Egyptian concern.
It comes amid concerns that tension could rise between the two countries as Cairo fears a “forced displacement of Palestinians” towards the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula.

Egyptian MP Mustafa Bakri warned of the repercussions of any Israeli military action near the Egyptian border.
On his X account, the deputy wrote, “This is a dangerous development that portends dire consequences for the border region... Egypt’s borders are a red line.” He said the “Zionist actions” could cause a serious crisis.
Meanwhile, the General Authority for Crossings and Borders in Gaza said on Saturday that Egypt has denied reports about military movements by the Israeli forces along the Egyptian-Palestinian borders.
It said, “Some media outlets are intentionally or unknowingly playing suspicious roles in the transmission of news and information. We ask them to adhere to the national line and the supreme interest of our people.”
The Israeli army continues its harsh military operations in Gaza.
The director general of the Gaza hospital said, “The Israeli occupation carries out massacres in the Gaza Strip,” reporting daily arrival of hundreds of martyrs and wounded to the hospital.
He told Al Qahera News, “We are experiencing a severe shortage of medical supplies... The occupation prevents aid trucks from reaching hospitals and residents.”
The director general then warned about the collapse of the health system in the Gaza Strip.
Until Saturday, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said 20,258 people have been killed and 53,688 people were injured in the Israeli attacks.



EU Urges Immediate Halt to Israel-Hezbollah War

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, left, meets with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, right, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, left, meets with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, right, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
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EU Urges Immediate Halt to Israel-Hezbollah War

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, left, meets with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, right, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, left, meets with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, right, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (AP)

Top EU diplomat Josep Borrell called for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war while on a visit to Lebanon on Sunday, as the group claimed attacks deep into Israel.  

The Israeli military said Iran-backed Hezbollah fired around 160 projectiles into Israel during the day. Some of them were intercepted but others caused damage to houses in central Israel, according to AFP images.  

A day after the health ministry said Israeli strikes on Beirut and across Lebanon killed 84 people, state media reported two strikes on Sunday on the capital's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold.

Israel's military said it had attacked "headquarters" of the group "hidden within civilian structures" in south Beirut.

War between Israel and Hezbollah escalated in late September, nearly a year after the group began launching strikes in solidarity with its Palestinian ally Hamas following that group's October 7 attack on Israel.

The conflict has killed at least 3,754 people in Lebanon since October 2023, according to the health ministry, most of them since September.  

On the Israeli side, authorities say at least 82 soldiers and 47 civilians have been killed.  

Earlier this week, US special envoy Amos Hochstein said in Lebanon that a truce deal was "within our grasp" and then headed to Israel for talks with officials there.  

In the Lebanese capital, Borrell held talks with parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, who has led mediation efforts on behalf of ally Hezbollah.

"We see only one possible way ahead: an immediate ceasefire and the full implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701," Borrell said.  

"Lebanon is on the brink of collapse", he warned.  

Under Resolution 1701, which ended the last Hezbollah-Israel war of 2006, Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers should be the only armed forces present in the southern border area.  

The resolution also called for Israel to withdraw troops from Lebanon, and reiterated earlier calls for "disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon."