Netanyahu meets in Jerusalem with Egyptian head of intelligence on Gaza ceasefire
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Sunday at the Prime Minister’s Residence in Jerusalem with Egyptian General Intelligence Service head Abbas Kamel and a delegation of senior officials.
PM Netanyahu-meets-with Egyptian Intelligence Service head Abbas Kamel. (Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO)
The two discussed strengthening cooperation between Israel and Egypt as well as regional issues.
“They praised the ties and understandings, and the countries’ joint effort on various security and diplomatic issues,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated.
Their meeting took place as Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi was in Cairo to meet with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry and to discuss a possible long-term ceasefire with the Hamas terror organization, the first official visit by an Israeli foreign minister in Egypt in 13 years.
Both Netanyahu and Ashkenazi raised Israel’s demand for the prompt return of the bodies of two IDF soldiers and the two civilians being held in by Hamas in the Strip.
The Israeli and Egyptian officials in both meetings also discussed mechanisms and processes to prevent the strengthening of Hamas and its misuse of the international aid that will be directed to the civilian population in the future.
Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen and National Security Council (NSC) head Meir Ben-Shabbat also participated in the meeting. Ben-Shabbat and Kamel held a lengthy meeting earlier Sunday on the issues.
The unconditional ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, brokered primarily by Egypt, went into effect on May 21 after 11 days of warfare. The situation in the area is still tense with Hamas already presenting demands and issuing threats about the resumption of the hostilities if Israel does not meet its demands.
Israel is seeking a broader deal with Hamas, while the terror organization is reportedly opposed to a comprehensive long-term solution.
Several countries have pledged millions in aid to Gaza, and Israel, Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, and Hamas have to agree on a mechanism that will ensure that the funds are spent on reconstruction and rehabilitation and not on the rebuilding of its terror infrastructure destroyed by the IDF during Operation Guardian if the Walls.
if the material for rockets did not come in to Gaza did not come in via Israel .It must have come thru Egypt. either with coelution or corruption.
with Bibi spending all his time on Iran .He took his eye off the ball in Gaza