The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Saturday that she was opposed to the “forced displacement” of Palestinians after meeting Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi in Cairo.
“I discussed the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza with President Sissi, thanked Egypt for its role in providing and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to vulnerable Palestinians,” said Ms von der Leyen on X (formerly Twitter).
The war between Israel and Hamas was sparked by the Islamist movement’s bloody attack on October 7 in Israel from the Gaza Strip. In retaliation, Israel vowed to “annihilate” Hamas, relentlessly shelling the besieged territory.
According to the Hamas government, 12,000 Palestinians were killed in these bombings, the majority civilians. And according to the UN, more than two-thirds of the Gaza Strip’s 2.4 million residents have been displaced by the war.
On the Israeli side, the Hamas attack left 1,200 dead, mostly civilians killed on October 7, according to the Israeli authorities.
“We agree on the principle of non-forced displacement of Palestinians and on a political horizon based on a two-state solution,” Israeli and Palestinian, she added.
The President of the European Commission then flew to Al-Arich, in the Sinai Peninsula, according to the governor of this region bordering Israel and Gaza.
From there, she went to the Rafah crossing point, according to images she posted on X, where she greeted the people again. “Egyptian efforts” to deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.
It is in al-Arich airport that international aid has been piling up for weeks to be delivered via Rafah, the only opening in the Gaza Strip which is not in the hands of Israel and where the help trickles down.
In al-Arich, the President of the Commission indicated that the EU had “quadrupled its humanitarian aid to Gaza, now reaching more than 100 million euros, in addition to the 260 million euros provided by member states.”
“We all agree that the volume of aid reaching Gaza needs to increase, and that is the idea behind Cyprus’ proposal to establish a sea corridor,” she said.
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides announced Friday that Cyprus and Israel were close to reaching an agreement to open a humanitarian aid corridor between the eastern Mediterranean island and the Gaza Strip.
Mrs von der Leyen also indicated that the EU was working to strengthen its “strategic partnership” with Egypt.
In 2022, during his last visit, the EU, Israel and Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding to supply Europe with natural gas.
Cairo has invested billions in natural gas in recent years and wants to become a major exporter.