Egypt, Jordan: Israeli aggression against Gaza, Lebanon, West Bank must end

CAIRO – 3 October 2024: Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi affirmed that the Israeli aggression against Lebanon should end immediately, warning of catastrophic repercussions of this ongoing escalation on regional safety and stability.

In a joint statement released on Thursday, both Ministers -in a phone call tacking the Israeli aggression on Gaza and Lebanon- affirmed that the Israeli escalating and non-justifying moves against the West Bank push the region towards an all-out regional war.

They called for an immediate stop to the Israeli escalation against Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank.

Abdelatty and Safadi affirmed that both Egypt and Jordan support Lebanon’s safety, stability and sovereignty, condemning Israeli attacks on the Lebanese capital, Beirut.

Both Ministers also said it is necessary to support Lebanese efforts to apply the UN Resolution No. 1701 and deploy Lebanese Army forces in Southern Lebanon. Additionally, they highlighted the importance of supporting efforts to elect a new Lebanese President.

Egyptian Minister confirmed that sending humanitarian aid to Lebanon is vital amid the internal displacement of more than one million Lebanese nationals from the South due to the Israeli aggression.

In the end, both Ministers said that the UNSC is responsible for preserving peace and stability and forcing Israel to respect the International Law and the International Humanitarian Law and to stop its aggression on Gaza and Lebanon.

Over the past year, Israel has persisted in its war in Gaza, killing over 41,600 Palestinians, despite international calls for immediate and lasting ceasefire.

Israeli forces have also killed more than 1,900 individuals and injured over 9,000 others in Lebanon in Israel-Hezbollah cross-border clashes since the beginning of the Gaza war, as per Lebanese government data.

The majority of the casualties took place within the last two weeks, coinciding with Israel's extensive airstrikes throughout Lebanon and the commencement of a ground offensive in the Arab country on Monday. However, the Lebanese Hezbollah fighters carried out several operations and thwarted some Israeli attempts of invading some villages Southern Lebanon and caused several deaths and injuries among Israeli forces.

Israel also launched massive attacks on Houthi-linked targets over the past months and has pledged "painful" response to a recent Iranian missile attack, a step that can trigger a vast regional war.

On Tuesday, Iran launched nearly 200 missiles at Israeli military targets, marking its most substantial military offensive against Israel, and around double the size of a previous Iranian missile attack last April.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said the assault comes in retaliation for the Israeli assassinations of leader of Lebanese Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah near Beirut on Friday and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last July.

Despite international appeals for de-escalation, Israel has persisted in its military operations in Gaza, Lebanon, and against the Houthis in Yemen, heightening concerns of a broader conflict.

Additional Reporting by Amr Mohamed Kandil