Egypt joins the international community in marking the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which is celebrated on November 29 every year, in solidarity with the steadfast Palestinian people, and affirmation of the Palestinian cause as a living and present issue in international forums and the world conscience.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday that the International Day coincides this year with a painful reality, in which the Palestinian people are facing an unprecedented brutal aggression, in which humanity is slaughtered every day for more than 54 days.
It said that the Palestinians are suffering from flagrant violations of international law and humanitarian law and that the international community is standing idly by in front of a terrible toll of civilian victims of this aggression, which claimed the lives of about 15 thousand civilians, most of them women and children. It also said that millions of Palestinians are exposed to practices that contradict all principles of humanity. The government and the people of Egypt, in light of their historical responsibility, their Arab solidarity, and their permanent commitment to international legitimacy and the UN Charter, affirmed their permanent and unlimited support for the Palestinian people in defending their cause as the first cause of the Arab nation.
Egypt stressed that its position on the Palestinian issue has not and will not change and that it is committed to its responsibility towards the Palestinian issue as a genuine commitment, for which it is exerting every precious effort until the brotherly Palestinian people obtain their legitimate rights to establish their independent state.
It called on the international community to take serious and decisive action to stop the grave Israeli violations against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the entire occupied Palestinian territory, and to end the injustice and suffering of the Palestinian people.
It also called for a permanent and unconditional ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to preserve the blood of innocent people and to provide the necessary relief and humanitarian assistance adequately and sustainably to deal with the unprecedented humanitarian tragedy that the Palestinian people are facing.
On this day, Egypt stressed that regional stability in the Middle East will only be achieved through a fair and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian issue, based on the two-state solution and the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy.
This requires the international community to join hands with all seriousness to implement the two-state solution and the realization of an independent Palestinian state that comprises the territories on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Egypt reminded the international community of a steadfast people who have been suffering for more than 70 years from the scourge of occupation, murder, repression, and isolation, who deserve all the countries and peoples of the world to join hands with them at this critical moment, and for the international community to stand in support of them in their just and legitimate demands and their right to establish their independent state.
The commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people coincides with the difficult humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, in light of the Israeli war that broke out on the seventh of last month, following a surprise attack launched by the Hamas movement.
Since then, Israel has imposed a blockade on the Strip, which has been under siege since Hamas came to power in 2007, cutting off water, food, electricity, medicine, and fuel.
According to the UN, about 1.4 million people have been displaced from their homes in Gaza and the northern Gaza Strip, more than half of the Strip’s population, since the outbreak of the war.
The displaced are experiencing difficulty in providing bread and other basic items, amid international warnings of the worsening and out-of-control humanitarian situation.
In this regard, the network of Palestinian NGOs demanded in a statement on Wednesday to provide immediate international protection to the Palestinian people under occupation, and to stop the series of its crimes against unarmed civilians,” the statement said.
These organizations stressed “the importance of working and having a serious will and stopping the policy of double standards by some international parties, including the United States.”
