US president's senior adviser Jared Kushner is seen during a welcome ceremony in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on May 23, 2017 - AFP/Thomas Coex
CAIRO – 21 June 2018: Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi met Thursday with Jared Kushner, senior advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, and Jason Greenblatt, the special representative for international negotiations to discuss the Palestinian issue.
Kushner reviewed with President Sisi the efforts of the U.S. Administration to push forward the resumption of the negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli authorities, and to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, according to presidential spokesman Bassam Radi.
From left, Jason Greenblatt, Jared Kushner, President Sisi, Sameh Shoukry, Abbas Kamel, Bassam Radi – Press photo, June, 21, 2018
During the meeting, Sisi affirmed supporting the international initiatives aiming to achieve a fair and comprehensive settlement between the two states according to the internationally recognized standards and the two-state solution along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine.
President Sisi stressed that achieving a just and comprehensive settlement to such pivotal issue will help achieve stability and security in various countries in the region, Radi added.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Abbas Kamel, acting head of general intelligence service, also attended the meeting.
The White House said in a statement that the U.S. officials discussed with Sisi enhancing the cooperation between Egypt and the U.S. and addressing the need to facilitate humanitarian aid to Gaza.
A delegation headed by Kushner arrived Thursday in Cairo for a short visit to discuss the Palestinian issue with top officials, including President Sisi.
Sisi had met with Kushner, Greenblatt, and Dina Powell, the U.S. deputy national security advisor for strategy in Cairo in August, 2017, to discuss the Palestinian cause.
The delegation's visit comes as part of their five-country tour made to discuss the Palestinian issue with key players. The five countries include Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The tour aims to discuss peace efforts and the crisis in Gaza. However, the trip does not include a meeting with Palestinian officials, as they refused to meet with any of the U.S. officials following Trump's decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, according to U.S. media reports.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received Kushner and Greenblatt on Wednesday to discuss the Palestinian-Israeli peace process.
Kushner and Greenblatt also met with King Abdullah of Jordan on Tuesday in the capital, Amman, a day after Abdullah held talks in Amman with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Gaza protests peaked on May 14, where at least 61 Palestinians were killed, as tens of thousands of Gazans protested and clashes erupted on the same day of the US Embassy's relocation from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Demonstrations and clashes have continued at a low level since then. At least 121 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the unrest.
On Wednesday, the Israeli military announced that its warplanes had struck about 25 Hamas sites in Gaza after Palestinian militants launched 45 rockets and mortars at the Israeli lands, according to Israeli media. In a joint statement on Wednesday, Hamas and Islamic Jihad warned that all future Israeli strikes in Gaza will be retaliated with rocket fire.
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