Cairo and Beirut call for Israeli withdrawal and end to hostilities in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria

Egypt and Lebanon called for an end to Israeli hostilities in Palestine, Lebanon and Syria after a meeting of their foreign ministers in Cairo on Tuesday.

The two ministers stressed the importance of Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territories it continues to occupy and the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was issued in 2006 to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah at the time.

After meeting Youssef Rajji, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty expressed Egypt's support for Lebanon in the face of repeated attacks by Israel, which says it is trying to neutralise the threat posed by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

Mr Abdelatty said Egyptian construction companies were willing to take part in Lebanon’s reconstruction after repeated Israeli attacks caused significant destruction in Lebanese cities and towns, particularly in the south.

Mr Abdelatty and his counterpart Mr Rajji also said their countries would increase economic co-operation, a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry read.

Their meeting in Cairo comes two days after Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun said disarming Hezbollah, a key demand of the Trump administration in the US, would be a delicate issue.

Mr Aoun said he would not rush to force Hezbollah to down their weapons because that would be too destabilising for Lebanon.

Tuesday’s meeting also coincided with the arrival in Cairo of a Hamas delegation for talks on a new proposal by Egypt and Qatar to end the war in Gaza. Both countries, along with the US, have acted as mediators in efforts to halt the fighting between Hamas and Israel in the Palestinian enclave.

A Hamas official told AFP that new ideas were being discussed towards reaching a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, which has been devastated by an Israeli military offensive launched in response to the Palestinian militant group's attack on southern Israel in October 2023.

An Israeli delegation arrived in Cairo on Sunday to meet mediators in a bid to reach a breakthrough in the peace effort, which previously fell apart when Israel resumed attacks on Gaza in March, after two months of a shaky ceasefire.

The renewed assault has killed more than 1,800 people, pushing the Palestinian death toll in the war past 51,000, Gaza's health authorities say.

Early last month, Israel also blocked the entry of humanitarian aid, with the UN warning the already dire humanitarian situation will only get worse if the blockade is not lifted.