During the press conference, which followed the Slovenian minister's visit to the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, Vajon indicated that it was shocking to see the border crossing closed for the fifth day in a row, urging Israel to open “humanitarian paths.”
The Slovenian minister said Israel is not only violating basic ethics but international law as well, referring to the killing of nearly 35,000 Palestinians since the start of the Israeli war on 7 October as well as the displacement of civilians.
Slovenia has repeatedly called for a ceasefire and respect for international law, she added.
“There is an Israeli plan to displace civilians, and we ask the Israelis to stop doing so.”
Vajon also condemned the recent Israeli attacks on Rafah, while stressing the importance of peace talks to avoid the expansion of the current conflict.
Since 7 October, Vajon noted, Slovenia has increased its humanitarian aid to Gaza to €2 million, including for the UNRWA, expressing her country’s support for the UN agency and respect for its neutrality.
She added that the Slovenian government on Thursday started procedures to recognize the Palestinian state, noting that the goal is achieving the two-state solution and the peaceful coexistence between the Palestinians and Israelis.
The Slovenian minister praised the Egyptian role in dealing with the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
The Egyptian foreign minister expressed his appreciation for Slovenia’s positions regarding issues related to the Arab region, especially the Palestinian cause, saying the Slovenian stances are consistent with the principles of international humanitarian law.
Slovenia was one of the first countries that called for a ceasing fire in Gaza, protecting civilians, allowing of the entry of humanitarian aid, and rejecting the displacement of the Palestinian people.
These positions, Shoukry added, were taken both within the framework of the European Union and the framework of Slovenia's membership in the Security Council.
Slovenia was among the nations that voted in favour of General Assembly resolutions supporting Palestine’s full membership in the UN, he pointed out.
Meanwhile, Shoukry reiterated Egypt's rejection of Israeli military operations in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, warning that this step would result in "severe harm" to civilians.
He reaffirmed the need to reach a ceasefire and exchange detainees in Gaza "so that the crisis and its expanding repercussions in the region are contained."
Shoukry said the humanitarian situation in Gaza is “unbearable" and so all parties are required to negotiate "from the standpoint of flexibility to reach a ceasefire.”
“There are moderate proposals that meet the purpose of both sides,” he continued.
Rafah & peace treaty
When asked if the Israeli escalation in Rafah has repercussions on the Egyptian-Israeli peace agreement, Shoukry said the agreement “is a strategic choice that Egypt has made four decades ago.”
It is “the basic foundation for achieving security and peace. The agreement has its own mechanisms that are activated to deal with any violations that may occur,” he noted.
“This matter is processed within a technical framework, within the framework of the Military Liaison Committee, and we continue to deal with this agreement from this perspective,” the minister explained.
The Egypt–Israel peace treaty was signed by late Egyptian President Anwar El-Sadat and then-Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin in 1979 in Washington, following the 1978 Camp David Accords.
The agreement, signed in the wake of the Egyptian victory in the 1973 War against Israel, ended the Israeli occupation of the Sinai Peninsula since the 1967 War. As per the treaty, Egypt became the first Arab country to officially recognize Israel.
Israel, whose brutal war on Gaza has continued for seven months, is facing growing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire in Gaza.
However, Israel deployed tanks into Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip and took control of the Palestinian side of the border crossing with Egypt.
Not a single aid truck has crossed into Gaza since Tuesday.
Recent truce talks in Cairo, mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the US, failed to reach a deal between Hamas and Israel to stop the war.
On Thursday, Hamas and Israeli delegations departed the Egyptian capital without reaching an agreement.
The Israeli army has killed and injured over 110,000 Palestinians - most of them women and children since 7 October.
Israeli airstrikes have caused extensive damage to Gaza's infrastructure and displaced most of the strip’s residents.
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