From Egypt, Abbas rejects forced displacement of Palestinians

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
8 Jan 2024 19:15

In a meeting with his Egyptian counterpart, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stresses that the only way to end the ongoing situation is to end the Israeli occupation.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city Ramallah, on Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023. (Alaa Badarneh/Pool via AP)

The Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, traveled to Cairo, Egypt, on Monday, and held talks with the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi as senior US, German, and EU diplomats carried out regional visits to discuss developments in occupied Palestine.

Abbas, in a press statement, said that the "only solution" to end the ongoing situation was "ending the Israeli occupation of the land of the state of Palestine and its capital [East] al-Quds."

Moreover, it has been reported that Abbas also told el-Sisi that the Palestinian Authority rejected all plans to forcefully displace Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, or the eastern part of al-Quds.

Egyptian official denies involvement in Israeli Philadelphia Axis plots

An Egyptian official has denied any cooperation between Egypt and the Israeli occupation in relation to the "Philadelphia Axis", confirming to Al-Qahera that media reports discussing such cooperation are unfounded.

The "Philadelphi Axis" is a region that extends from the Israeli-controlled Karm Abu Salem crossing, linking the Gaza Strip and occupied territories, to the southernmost point on the Gaza Strip's coast.

Also known as the "Philadelphi Route", the 14 km narrow strip of land separated Palestine from Egypt and was established as a buffer zone between "Israel" and Egypt in a 1979 treaty. Before the Strip was liberated in 2005, the Axis was under the control of Israeli occupation forces.

Initially, the Israeli occupation had intended to utilize its presence in the region as a method to prevent the transfer of materials and goods into the Gaza Strip, however, intricate tunnel systems eventually deemed it an ineffective method. As the occupation withdrew from the Gaza Strip, it concluded the "Philadelphia Accord" with Egypt, in which 750 Egyptian troops were allowed to be positioned alongside the border, to "maintain security".