Egyptian FM, UN coordinator discuss pathways of humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza

CAIRO – 18 July 2024: Minister of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Egyptian Expats Badr Abdel Aty received Thursday UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag stressing Egypt's openness to cooperate on implementing UNSC resolution no. 2720 on guaranteeing the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza Strip.

The minister expressed denunciation and concern about the precarious humanitarian conditions in the enclave and that have persisted for 10 months. He noted that Egypt used to deliver aid through Rafah Border Crossing with Gaza until the Israeli forces seized its Palestinian side and made it go out of service.

Hence, the diplomat urged that Israel must withdraw its forces from Palestinian Rafah and make room for the operation of the crossing. He equally demanded that UN coordinator identifies the obstacles crippling the delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza. In a related context, the minister condemned the attacks against aid workers.

On her side, Kaag stressed the importance of a political framework that would enable her to do her work optimally. She gave an overview of her efforts in the past period pointing out that the military operations and insecurity in Gaza had been the main hindrances. The talks similarly tackled assessments of the different pathways of humanitarian aid delivery.