The summit hosted by Egypt brought together dozens of leaders and representatives from both European and Arab countries, with the aim of addressing the escalation of violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as well as avenues for de-escalation. However, attendees did not reach a final joint statement, in an event marked by the total absence of Israel and important American officials.
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Another failed attempt by the international community to mediate peace in the Middle East. In a press release after the closure of the spontaneous summit convened by Cairo, the Egyptian Presidency regretted that the participants had not been able to reach a final agreement, in addition to criticizing “the deficiency in the values of the international community when it comes to address crises.
“While we see that in one place they rush and compete to promptly condemn the murder of innocent people, in another we find incomprehensible hesitations when it comes to denouncing the same act,” said the text published by the presidential office by Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Some voices expressed that the Egyptian summit had no clear direction, since, despite having the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, there were no representatives of Hamas or Israel, the two protagonists of the current escalation. The United States only sent one official from its embassy in Egypt.
The most recent initiative of the Egyptian president to bring closer the positions between Europe and the Arab nations did not come to fruition, after the representations expressed their differences on two specific issues: the condemnation of the Israeli attacks on the civilian population and the possible Palestinian exodus.
Arab indignation and European indecision
The representations of France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy promoted a declaration condemning the Hamas attacks in Israeli territory on October 7, but, in response to the demand of Jordan, Egypt, Qatar and the Palestinian Authority to do what Even with Tel Aviv’s attacks on civilians in Gaza, the Europeans were more reserved, calling for recognition of Israel’s “legitimate defense.”
“The message that the Arab world receives is that the lives of Palestinians matter less than those of Israelis,” said the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, during his final speech at the Peace Summit, in which he also showed “horrified” by the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and called for an immediate ceasefire.
The Jordanian head of state was one of the most active leaders at the meeting, also expressing his disagreement with the requests of Israel and the United States for Egypt to receive Palestinian refugees ‘temporarily’ in the Sinai desert, a situation that worries the Arab community. because of the possibility that, if the people of Gaza leave the territory, they may never have the chance to return.
![In this photo provided by the press office of the Egyptian presidency, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, right, greets Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, during the international peace summit poses for a group photo in the New Administrative Capital, outside Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, October 21, 2023.](https://s.france24.com/media/display/e71dfb8e-7060-11ee-81b2-005056bf30b7/AP23294440900770.jpg)
“I want to express to the world clearly and unequivocally that the liquidation of the Palestinian cause without a just solution is out of all possibility and, in any case, it will never come at the expense of Egypt, at all,” mentioned the Egyptian leader, who echoed Jordan’s concerns by mentioning that Cairo “rejects the forced displacement of Palestinians.”
As Israel once again intensifies its bombing and prepares to launch a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave that is known to be imminent, the leader of the Palestinian Authority remains firm: “We will not leave, we will not leave and we will remain in our land” .
Tensions rise and time is running out
The European contingent was limited to advocating for the creation of humanitarian corridors for the entry of aid to the Gaza Strip and promoting efforts to de-escalate the current conflict, prevent its expansion to other countries in the region and favor a two-way solution. States in the future.
For the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, the greatest success of the meeting was that all parties were able to “listen to each other”, although he acknowledged that “we need to work more together.” An attitude shared by the acting president of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, who had a personal meeting with Abbas where he expressed his solidarity and highlighted Madrid’s commitment to continue sending humanitarian aid.
Although the Western bloc was also emphatic that Israeli activities must be “rigorously” in accordance with current international humanitarian law, the alleged lack of clarity in Tel Aviv’s involvement with the murder of Palestinian civilians and the timid position of a large sector of the international community with the total blockade of the entry of water, food and fuel into the Gaza Strip could increase Israeli violations of the rules of war.
Furthermore, tension between Israel and the Arab world is increasingly increasing, calling into question the stability of Tel Aviv’s relations with countries such as Egypt and Jordan, which made their recognition of Israel official with the Camp David Accords in the 1990s. the 70s. Today, that regularization in their relationships is in danger.
The failure in regional diplomacy represented by the Peace Summit in Egypt demonstrates the lack of coordination between two parts of the world, with distant values and interests, which cannot reach an agreement while the attacks on the Gaza Strip already exceed 4,000 deaths. so far, according to figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
With Reuters, AP and local media
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