Trump must prioritise ending Israel’s wars, says Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty

Diplomat tells The National the PA should return to govern Gaza and emphasises need for rebuilding plan

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has said 'we are at a crucial crossroads in the region's history'. PA

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Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged US president-elect Donald Trump to prioritise ending Israel’s war on Gaza and Lebanon and emphasised the need for a “quick plan” with the UN to start rebuilding infrastructure in the Palestinian enclave.

In a comprehensive interview with The National, the diplomat called for the return of the Palestinian Authority (PA) to govern Gaza, insisting that Cairo would not tolerate an Israeli presence in the Salah Al Din strip, also known as the Philadelphi Corridor.

“We hope that the new administration will work swiftly to end Israel’s aggression on Gaza and Lebanon, and usher in a new phase of peace and stability in the region,” Mr Abdelatty affirmed. “The Middle East is in dire need of de-escalation more than ever after a devastating year, and we hope that President Trump will use his influence to bring about the much-needed stability our region requires.”

Egypt has been among Washington's closest Arab allies for 50 years and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi enjoyed a solid relationship with Mr Trump during his first term in the White House.

Donald Trump greets Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi outside the White House in Washington, DC in April, 2019. AFP

Mr Abdelatty said that his country looks forward to “working closely once again with President Trump and his new administration”, adding that Cairo “would like to build on the excellent working relationship and level of co-operation and understanding we enjoyed with President Trump during his first term to further promote our bilateral relations”.

Mr Trump’s first term was marked by unilateral steps detrimental to the Palestinian cause, including moving the US embassy to Jerusalem. However, in his second term, he will be operating in a radically different political environment in the region – one where several Arab states and Iran have formed closer ties, and where support for Palestine and the two-state solution on the global stage is significantly stronger than it was four years ago.

Under US President Joe Biden, the Middle East has faced escalating conflicts, with devastating wars in Gaza and Lebanon mainly against Tehran-backed groups Hamas and Hezbollah, and unprecedented direct attacks between Israel and Iran. The US president-elect, however, has expressed a strong commitment in calls with Palestinian and Israeli leaders to securing a ceasefire in Gaza after he takes office on January 20.

During the US presidential transition, fears of escalating violence in the Middle East are mounting. The absence of decisive US intervention during this period could embolden regional actors, worsen instability and complicate future peace efforts, making swift action by the incoming Trump administration crucial.

Mr Abdelatty cautioned that the region is vulnerable to any miscalculation that could worsen the crisis. “We are at a crucial crossroad in the history of the region and we must exert all efforts to de-escalate existing tensions in order to ensure that recent escalations do not cascade into an even more catastrophic scenario,” he said.

“In such complex circumstances, miscalculations could potentially drag the entire region into a broader conflict that would have devastating consequences on the region and beyond. War will never solve long-standing disputes. It will only aggravate tensions in a region already marred with instability and uncertainty.”

Ceasefire now

The conflict in the Middle East was caused by Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel on October 7 last year, which resulted in about 1,200 deaths and about 250 hostages taken into Gaza. Since then, Israel’s assault has killed more than 43,800 in Gaza and 3,500 in Lebanon. World leaders have called increasingly for a ceasefire and a deal to release the hostages.

“We continue to stand by our position that a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon is an absolute pressing priority,” said Mr Abdelatty, adding that the international community “should also recognise, without any further delay, the state of Palestine based on the lines of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital”.

Israeli military vehicles drive through the Salah Al Din strip, also known as the Philadelphi Corridor, in southern Gaza, on September 13, 2024. Reuters

He called for support for the return of the PA to assume governance in Gaza, where Hamas still holds power despite a year of war with Israel, and for an immediate plan to rebuild the devastated coastal enclave.

“It is crucial to begin implementing a quick plan, with the help of the United Nations, to commence the rehabilitation of infrastructure in Gaza,” he explained. “This should coincide with the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza to assume its legitimate role in governing the Gaza Strip. We are ready to help the PA, and we call on the international community to assist in empowering the PA.”

Egypt's dispute with Israel over the Gaza war, as well as control of the Palestinian side of the Gaza-Egypt land crossing and border strip, has strained relations between the neighbours to a level not seen since they signed a peace treaty 45 years ago. Israel captured the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in May and later seized the Salah Al Din border strip, which runs the length of the Egypt-Gaza border – about 12km.

“Egypt rejects any form of Israeli presence in the Philadelphi Corridor or the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing and insists on Israel's withdrawal from that area,” Mr Abdelatty, who has an extensive career in the Egyptian Foreign Service spanning three decades, told The National.

“Israel’s claims that its safety and security will be guaranteed through military means are unfounded. No matter how many operations they conduct, the only durable guarantee for Israel’s long-term security is achieving a two-state solution where both Palestinians and Israelis live in peace and enjoy dignity.”

The minister, who was a third secretary at the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv handling Israeli internal affairs and the Middle East peace process between 1991 and 1995, called on Israel to “immediately allow entry of all types of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, which it has hampered ever since it took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing”, adding that Israeli control “has deprived relief workers of the ability to assist Palestinians in Gaza, thereby rendering the Rafah crossing dysfunctional. The crossing must resume working in line with the Agreement on Movement and Access of 2005, signed by Israel and the Palestinian Authority”.

“It is disgraceful that in the 21st century, civilians trapped in conflict are unable to access adequate amounts of food, medicine, and shelter,” he added. “We must promptly and unconditionally allow all humanitarian assistance to enter Gaza to relieve the civilian population of all its suffering.”

To this end, Egypt is set to organise a ministerial conference in December to enhance the humanitarian response in Gaza.

Pursuing two-state solution

While tensions between Egypt and Israel are high, both countries fully understand that their peace treaty is a cornerstone of Middle East stability and that annulling that deal would have severe consequences for the entire region.

“Egypt was the first nation in the region to sign a peace treaty with Israel, with a vision to achieve comprehensive peace in the Middle East. However, Israel’s policies and actions do not serve that objective. Arab countries support a two-state solution, but does Israel?” asked Mr Abdelatty after several Israeli politicians, including new Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar stated that a Palestinian state is not “logical” any more.

“Both Palestinians and Israelis should live in peace and security, and we must collectively work to pursue the two-state solution that offers peace and security for both peoples,” Mr Abdelatty said. “That is the only viable option if we want to spare future Palestinian and Israeli generations the scourge of war and conflict.”

Egypt has been key in efforts to broker a Gaza ceasefire, hosting direct and indirect talks among US, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators to end the conflict and secure the release of Israeli hostages. While numerous rounds of talks have not yet yielded a lasting truce, Cairo remains committed to pursuing a resolution.

“Despite Israel’s intransigence and its insistence on continuing the war in Gaza, Egypt continues to spare no effort to reach an immediate and permanent ceasefire,” Mr Abdelatty added.

Lebanese search through the rubble after an Israeli strike on Hadath, south of Beirut. Reuters

“Our principle-based foreign policy and role as an honest broker in several conflicts is founded on our long-standing commitment to promoting peace and stability, a role that is trusted and valued by our regional and international partners,” the minister stressed.

He explained that, since the start of the war, Egypt has worked on three simultaneous tracks – the security track, which would lead to the release of hostages and captives; the humanitarian track to secure aid access to Gaza and evacuate the injured; and the political track, which aims to launch a path to achieve peace, while emphasising that any arrangements for the future in Gaza must be based on a two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Egypt, meanwhile, rejects any practices that perpetuate the separation between the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, according to the minister.

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has stated that Mr Trump's return to office presents an “important opportunity” for Israel to “apply Israeli sovereignty to the settlements”, designating 2025 as “the year of sovereignty” in the West Bank. He was speaking as Arab and Islamic leaders, led by Saudi Arabia, united at a summit in Riyadh to show unwavering support for a Palestinian state.

Mr Abdelatty, who has held several key positions, said the first crucial step to de-escalation in the region and to avoid catastrophic scenarios before Mr Trump’s second term was to secure a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon.

“The crisis in Gaza is a reminder that stability in the region will not be achieved as long as Israel continues to blatantly violate international law, international humanitarian law, and the UN Charter,” he said. “The world must not remain silent regarding these grave violations, and we must immediately end the suffering of the Palestinian people and the aggression in Lebanon.”