French President Emmanuel Macron and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah Sisi stressed on Thursday during a telephone conversation the need for de-escalation in the Gaza Strip, Elysee Palace said in a statement.
PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th August, 2018) French President Emmanuel Macron and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah Sisi stressed on Thursday during a telephone conversation the need for de-escalation in the Gaza Strip, Elysee Palace said in a statement.
"President Emmanuel Macron and President Abdel Fattah Sisi touched on the Israeli-Palestinian issue, stressing the need for urgent de-escalation and humanitarian support in the Gaza Strip. The French president welcomed Egypt's efforts to promote inter-Palestinian reconciliation, securing a truce in Gaza and improving humanitarian access for the civilian population," the statement said.
The leaders of the two countries also discussed the close bilateral cooperation between France and Egypt, including in the field of economy and security, it added.
"They touched upon regional challenges, in particular the situation in Libya and the efforts made by France and Egypt to accompany the political process promoted by the UN and its special envoy, which are based on the conclusions of the May 29 Paris conference," the document says.
The leaders of France and Egypt agreed to continue the exchange of views in the coming weeks, the French president's administration noted.
Tensions between the Israelis and the Palestinians near the Gaza border have been mounting since late March, which marked the beginning of the Palestinian protest campaign against Israel, dubbed the Great March of Return. The recent disturbances on the Israeli-Gaza border have been caused by continued shelling and the launch of arson balloons by Hamas militants into Israeli territories.
Egypt and the United Nations are attempting to come up with a plan to ease the current tensions between the Israelis and Palestinians. Since March, a number of temporary ceasefire agreements between Israel and Hamas have been reached through Egyptian mediation.
