Egypt’s foreign minister, UN chief discuss need for permanent Gaza ceasefire
Sameh Shoukry lauds key role adopted by Antonio Guterres in dealing with crisis in Palestine
Guterres and Shoukry discussed the deteriorating humanitarian and security situations in the Strip and diplomatic moves to restore a truce
Updated 07 December 2023
Gobran Mohamed
CAIRO: Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry has praised UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ handling of the crisis in Gaza.
Condemning any attempts to forcibly displace Palestinians, the minister told the UN chief that Cairo was keen to coordinate efforts to bring about a permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
In a phone call from Guterres to Shoukry, the officials discussed the deteriorating humanitarian and security situations in the Strip and diplomatic moves to restore a truce.
Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, Ahmed Abu Zaid, said Shoukry highlighted Egypt’s ongoing liaison with international parties and Arab and Muslim groups at the UN to find ways to end the conflict, and he noted the importance of applying Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.
Guterres thanked Cairo for its help in dealing with the crisis and its efforts to get vital aid deliveries through to the Palestinian people.
New strikes hit Iraq base housing Iran-backed fighters: faction source
Updated 3 sec ago
BAGHDAD: New strikes have hit a military base in Iraq housing the Iran-backed Kataeb Hezbollah group, while in the Kurdish city of Irbil air defenses intercepted drone attacks. “Three strikes hit Jurf Al-Nasr,” a Kataeb Hezbollah source told AFP, referring to a military base that serves as one of the main bastions of the powerful armed group, which has been targeted several times since the start of the Israel-US campaign against Iran. Iraq, which has recently regained a sense of stability but has long been a proxy battleground between the US and Iran, said it did not want to be dragged into the war. But it has not been spared. From the early hours of the campaign against Iran, strikes blamed on the US and Israel hit Iran-backed groups, which have vowed retaliation. On Sunday, nine Iran-backed fighters were killed in separate strikes, including five from Kataeb Hezbollah. The group announced it will bury its fighters Monday. The Kataeb Hezbollah source told AFP that four fighters were killed in an attack near the Syria-Iraq border and another in a strike on the Samawa region in Iraq’s south. Several Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, including Kataeb Hezbollah, have said they will not stay “neutral” and would defend the Islamic republic. A shadowy group called Saraya Awliyaa Al-Dam (Guardians of Blood), which claims to be part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, said on Telegram it was behind early Monday morning drone attacks on Baghdad airport. Since the start of the US-Israel campaign on Iran, drones have repeatedly been intercepted over Irbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, which hosts US-led coalition troops and a major US consulate complex. Loud bangs were heard Monday near Irbil airport, where foreign troops are deployed, an AFP journalist said. Earlier Monday, an AFP photographer said air defense systems downed drones near the airport.
