President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has stressed that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital constitutes the necessary condition for the realisation of peace and stability and for shifting the regional order from one of conflict and adversity as its core to another one based upon peace and development.
The Egyptian leader’s call was contained in the address he delivered at the plenary session of the Extraordinary Arab-Islamic Summit Conference that convened in Riyadh yesterday.
Underscoring the importance of the timing of the summit, President Sisi said it convenes against the backdrop of intricate regional complexities and a year of unrelenting aggression in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and Lebanon. These hostilities, he added, are unfolding amidst the international community’s shameful silence and disgraceful failure to fulfill its most fundamental duties, in the face of this perilous threat to international peace and security.
The future of the region and the world, President Sisi stated, is poised at a critical juncture, adding that the deplorable aggression against the Palestinian and Lebanese territories tests the very foundations of the global order.
Elaborating, President Sisi said that citizens in our Arab and Islamic countries, and people of free conscience across the globe, are rightfully questioning the value of any discourse on justice and fairness, while innocent children, women and the elderly are being brutally slaughtered every day.
“We reiterate that the essential prerequisite for attaining regional security and stability, and transitioning from a conflict-ridden regional order to one based on peace and development is the establishment of an independent Palestinian State, along the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” President Sisi told the Arab-Islamic summit.
Regarding the situation in Gaza, President Sisi said Egypt categorically condemns the systematic killing campaign being executed against innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip.
“In the name of Egypt, I unequivocally declare that we will unshakably defy all attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause, either through the forcible displacement or transfer of civilians or by rendering the Gaza Strip uninhabitable,” President Sisi said, emphasising that this is “utterly unacceptable and will absolutely not be tolerated under any circumstances.”
On the situation in Lebanon, President Sisi reaffirmed that Egypt is fully committed to providing assistance to the brothers in Lebanon, in support of the institutions of the Lebanese state, primarily the Lebanese army, and in an effort to end the outrageous aggression and destruction the brotherly Lebanese people are subjected to.
Egypt, he added, also seeks to strengthen efforts towards an urgent and immediate ceasefire and the full and non-selective implementation of Security Council Resolution No. 1701.
Despite the severity of the current situation, President Sisi went on, “we cling to hope, confident that there remains an opportunity to save our region and the world from the practices of the ages of darkness. We aspire to build a future worthy of the coming generations – a future defined by freedom, dignity, stability and prosperity.”
Concluding his address, President Sisi stressed that Egypt, which has borne the responsibility of initiating the path of peace in the region decades ago and has persevered in safeguarding it, even in the face of numerous challenges, remains steadfast in its commitment to peace as a strategic imperative and sole viable path forward.
Following the conference, President Sisi held two meetings, one with King Abdullah II of Jordan and the other with Lebanon’s Caretaker Prime Minister Naguib Mikati.
During their meeting, President Sisi and the Jordanian monarch warned against the perilous escalatory policies which push the region to the brink of all-out war, Presidency Spokesman Ahmed Fahmy said.
The two leaders also reiterated the critical need for the international community to adopt earnest steps toward ending the war in the region and launching the path of peace, based on the two-state solution, he added.
In the meeting with Mikati, President Sisi stressed Egypt’s support for Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, while expressing rejection of the Israeli aggression on the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, Spokesman Fahmy said.
The Lebanese prime minister commended Egypt’s firm position in support of Lebanon, emphasising his country’s backing to all efforts made by Cairo to achieve regional peace and stability, the spokesman said.
