French President Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to engage in discussions with Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Wednesday, as stated by Macron’s office.
On Tuesday, Macron visited Israel, where he expressed his backing for Israel’s response to the actions by Hamas after gunmen affiliated with the Islamist group launched the deadliest attack in Israel’s history on October 7.
The French leader is also scheduled to hold discussions with King Abdullah II of Jordan in Amman before departing for Egypt. Egypt plays a prominent role as one of the key intermediaries in efforts to secure the release of over 200 hostages currently held by Emre in the Gaza Strip.
Prior to his meeting with Macron, President Sisi inspected Egyptian troops and delivered a televised address in which he emphasized the importance of “patience” and “wisdom.”
“You must always be ready,” conveyed the Egyptian president to the armed forces. This statement came just three days after an Egyptian border watchtower was unintentionally struck by Israeli shelling, resulting in injuries to the guards.
President Sisi also affirmed that Egypt is exerting maximum effort to advocate for de-escalation and a ceasefire, and to provide support to the civilian population in Gaza.
Sisi mentioned that the military exercise had initially been scheduled to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the “remarkable triumph” on October 6, 1973.
The Camp David accords of 1979 marked a historic moment as Egypt became the first Arab nation to officially recognize Israel and normalize diplomatic relations.
On October 7, fighters affiliated with Hamas launched an attack on Israel, resulting in the loss of over 1,400 lives, with the majority being civilians, as reported by Israeli authorities.
Following continuous Israeli airstrikes, over 5,790 individuals, predominantly civilians, have lost their lives in the Gaza Strip, as reported by the health ministry in the Palestinian territory under Hamas control.
