Egypt has proposed an initiative for a two-day ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to exchange four Israeli hostages with some Palestinian prisoners in Israel, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi announced on Sunday.
“During the past few days, Egypt has made a serious effort by proposing an initiative aimed at pushing the situation forward and ceasing fire for two days to exchange four Israeli hostages with some Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons,” Sisi said during a joint press conference in Cairo with visiting Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
He added that negotiations would kick off within 10 days to reach a comprehensive ceasefire and secure aid delivery to Gaza.
The Egyptian president also rejected the forced displacement of Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip, warning that the Palestinian people in Gaza are suffering from a severe siege that may lead to starvation.
Regarding the Lebanese crisis, Sisi said that he had agreed with his Algerian counterpart on the necessity of not expanding the conflict in the region and reaching a ceasefire.
For his part, the Algerian president said that the people of Gaza are suffering the scourge of “full-fledged genocide.”
He noted that his country is working with Egypt to facilitate a truce that will allow humanitarian aid to reach the Palestinian people in Gaza, expressing support for Sisi’s initiative to reach a ceasefire in the war-torn Gaza Strip.
“Algeria is doing everything it can in the UN Security Council to reach a solution, or at least stop the genocide,” Tebboune said.
Israel has been conducting a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on October 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage.