Leaders of Egypt, Jordan, France in joint opinion article call for immediate ceasefire in Gaza

CAIRO – 9 April 2024: In a joint opinion article published on Monday, Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Jordanian king Abdullah II, and the French president Emanuel Macron say they are adamant that efforts are intensified to meet humanitarian and medical needs for the civilians in Gaza.

They demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to implement the relevant Security Council resolutions, called for the release of Israeli hostages, and cautioned against an invasion in Rafah. They emphasized that such an attack would only exacerbate human suffering and threaten a regional escalation.

The full text of the article:

Egypt, France, Jordan: Ceasefire now in Gaza

 

The war in Gaza and the catastrophic humanitarian suffering it is causing must end now. Violence, terror and war cannot bring peace to the Middle East. The Two-State solution will. It is the only credible path to guaranteeing peace and security for all, and ensuring that neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis ever have to relive the horrors that have befallen them since the October 7 attacks.

Ten days ago, the United Nations Security Council finally assumed its responsibility by demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This is a critical step that must be fully implemented without further delay.

In light of the intolerable human toll, we, the leaders of Egypt, France and Jordan, call for the immediate and unconditional implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2728. We underline the urgent need to bring about a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

We emphasize the urgency of implementing the Security Council’s demand for the immediate release of all hostages, and reaffirm our support for the Egypt-Qatar-US brokered negotiations dealing with ceasefire, hostages, and detainees.

As we urge all parties to abide by all relevant UN Security Council resolutions, we warn against the dangerous consequences of an Israeli offensive on Rafah, where more than 1.5 million Palestinian civilians have sought refuge. Such an offensive will only bring more death and suffering, heighten the risks and consequences of mass forcible displacement of the people of Gaza and threaten regional escalation. We reiterate our equal respect for all lives. We condemn all violations and abuses of international humanitarian law, including all acts of violence, terrorism and indiscriminate attacks on civilians. Protecting civilians is a fundamental legal obligation on all parties and the cornerstone of international humanitarian law. Violating this obligation is absolutely prohibited.

Palestinians in Gaza are no longer facing only a risk of famine, but famine is already setting in. There is an urgent need for a massive increase in the provision and distribution of humanitarian assistance. This is a core demand of UN Security Council resolutions 2720 and 2728, which emphasize the urgent need to expand aid supplies.

UN agencies, including UNRWA, and humanitarian actors play a critical role in humanitarian operations in Gaza. They must be protected and granted full access, including in the Northern part of the Gaza Strip. We condemn the killing of humanitarian aid workers, most recently the attack against World Central Kitchen’s aid convoy.

Consistent with international law, Israel is under an obligation to ensure the flow of humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian population, a responsibility it has not fulfilled. We reiterate the Security Council’s demand to lift barriers to humanitarian assistance and for Israel to immediately facilitate humanitarian assistance through all crossing points, including in the North of the Gaza strip and through a direct land corridor from Jordan, as well as by sea.

 

We, the leaders of Egypt, France and Jordan, are determined to continue stepping up our efforts to meet the humanitarian, medical and health needs of the civilian population of Gaza, in close coordination with the UN system and regional partners.

Lastly, we underline the urgency of restoring hope for peace and security for all in the region, primarily the Palestinian and Israeli peoples. We emphasize our determination to continue working together to avoid further regional spillover and call on all actors to refrain from any escalatory action. We urge an end to all unilateral measures, including settlement activity and land confiscation. We also urge Israel to prevent settler violence.

We emphasize the necessity of respecting the historical and legal status quo at Jerusalem’s Muslim and Christian Holy Sites, and the role of the Jordanian Waqf under the Hashemite Custodianship.

We stress our determination to step up our joint efforts to effectively bring about the two-state solution. The establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the basis of the two-state solution, in accordance with international law and relevant UNSC resolutions, to live side by side in peace and security with Israel, is the only way to achieve true peace. The United Nations Security Council must play a role in reopening decisively this horizon for peace.

 

King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt

Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic"