Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Co-operation and Egyptian Expatriates Badr Abdelatty has stressed the urgent need to ensure safe, full and sustained humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip, while calling for accelerated international efforts to improve humanitarian and healthcare conditions and support early recovery.
Abdelatty made the remarks during his participation on Thursday in a Ministerial Roundtable on Humanitarian Access and Healthcare in the Gaza Strip, hosted by UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband and co-chaired by Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and the State of Qatar.
A number of foreign ministers, senior officials, and representatives of international organisations and humanitarian agencies attended the event.
Abdelatty, for his part, reviewed Egypt’s ongoing humanitarian efforts in support of the Palestinian people, as well as its intensive engagement with all relevant parties to improve conditions in the Gaza Strip.
He stressed the need to maintain sustained and unhindered humanitarian access and to launch early recovery efforts that can help secure dignified living conditions for Palestinians.
The foreign minister also underlined the importance of preserving the unity of Palestinian territory and maintaining the geographic and political contiguity between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
He stressed the need to support Palestinian institutions and enable them to fulfil their responsibilities, while preserving the central role of United Nations agencies, particularly UNRWA, in supporting the resilience of the Palestinian people on their land.
He further emphasised that these efforts should pave the way for early recovery and reconstruction within the framework of a credible political process leading to the realisation of an independent Palestinian state.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ambassador Nader Zaki said the meeting addressed developments on the ground and the humanitarian and healthcare situation in the Gaza Strip, as well as ways of translating international efforts into practical measures to improve living conditions for the Palestinian people.
Participants discussed the importance of completing the commitments under Phase One of US President Donald Trump’s plan and moving without delay to Phase Two, while ensuring that all parties fulfil their obligations and maintaining the ceasefire.
The meeting also underscored the need to guarantee safe, full and sustained access for humanitarian and medical assistance without obstruction, facilitate the medical evacuation of patients and the wounded, and enable the delivery of essential supplies, medicines and equipment required to operate hospitals and other vital facilities.
