Ashraf AboArafe
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa held a phone consultation on Saturday, August 22, to coordinate strategies regarding the ongoing developments in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Minister Abdelatty reaffirmed Egypt’s full backing for the Palestinian Authority (PA) and its national institutions, emphasizing the critical need to empower the PA to assume its responsibilities across both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He stressed that this unified governance is vital to preserving Palestinian territorial integrity and fulfilling the Palestinian people’s aspirations for an independent state along the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The discussion covered key developments in the Gaza Strip and ongoing Egyptian efforts alongside regional and international mediators to implement the broader peace roadmap and President Trump’s peace plan mandates. Key elements of this strategy include:
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Complete Israeli Withdrawal: Securing a full military exit from the Gaza Strip.
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Humanitarian Aid: Ensuring an uninterrupted flow of aid, alongside early recovery and reconstruction initiatives.
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Transitional Governance: Facilitating the deployment of the National Committee for Gaza Administration and the international stabilization force to restore order and lay the groundwork for a comprehensive political resolution.
Turning to the West Bank, Minister Abdelatty strongly condemned escalating illegal settlement expansion, rising settler violence, and ongoing attacks against Palestinian citizens and property. He issued a sharp warning against the implementation of the E1 settlement project, highlighting that it poses a direct threat to the geographic contiguity of the Palestinian territories and risks completely isolating East Jerusalem. Reaffirming Egypt’s firm stance, he rejected any attempts at land annexation, forced displacement, or alterations to the legal and demographic status of the occupied lands.
Prime Minister Mustafa expressed deep appreciation for Egypt’s steadfast support of the Palestinian cause and its defense of Palestinian rights, reiterating the PA’s commitment to maintaining close, continuous coordination with Cairo during this critical phase.
