- 4 apr 2011
ElBaradei: We'll fight back if Israel attacks Gaza
In interview with Arab newspaper, former IAEA chief says if elected as Egypt's next president he will open Rafah crossing in case of an Israeli attack.
Former International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who had previously announced his intetions to run for the presidency of Egypt, said Monday that if Israel attacked Gaza we would declare war against the Zionist regime."
In an interview with the Al-Watan newspaper he said: "In case of any future Israeli attack on Gaza - as the next president of Egypt I will open the Rafah border crossing and will consider different ways to implement the joint Arab defense agreement."
He also stated that "Israel controls Palestinian soil" adding that that "there has been no tangible breakthrough in reconciliation process because of the imbalance of power in the region - a situation that creates a kind of one way peace."
Discussing his agenda for Egypt, ElBaradei said that distribution of income between the different classes in Egypt would be his most important priority if he were to win the upcoming elections.
ELBaradei's main competition is Arab League Secretary General and former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa. Last month he discussed Egypt's relationship with Israel. "During my term in office the foreign ministry was subject to unfavorable policies from Israel with regards to the peace agreement," Said Moussa who served as foreign minister 1991-2001," he said.
"We thought the peace process was like a waterwheel endlessly turning around and around without reaching a defined point. My opinion was that we needed to be honest with the Israelis, taking determined measures within the framework of the foreign ministry's operations. Maybe this led to a lack of agreement on all Israel related issues."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4051939,00.html
Egypt claims price difference from Israel
Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil al-Arabi says the Camp David Accord includes no articles which would oblige his country to sell cheap oil and gas to Israel.
He told an Egyptian TV network that anyone who interprets the accord as such is truly mistaken.
Therefore, the top Egyptian diplomat said, Cairo is to claim the difference of the price charged for the natural gas exported to Israel and the real market rate.
He said former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was Israel's strategic treasure, meaning this would not be the case from now on.
Al-arabi also underlined that Iran should not be regarded as a hostile country.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173030.html
27 dec 2011, 10:40 , Respect -
Maria 5 apr 2011
Calls for connecting Gaza to Egyptian electricity grid
GAZA, (PIC)-- Suhail Sakik, the director of the power plant in Gaza, has called on Egypt to restart a project that would enable the Gaza Strip to buy its electricity from Egypt as the Strip falls under threat of crisis during an ongoing power shortage.
Gaza lives in a crisis exceeding 30 per cent of its electric power needs, Sakik said during a conference staged by Pal Think for strategic studies titled two years since the Sharm al-Sheikh conference and the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip has not yet begun.
Sakik blamed political reasons for Egypt refraining from providing the Strip with 150 megawatts of electric as had been agreed.
Gaza has had a recurring electricity crisis due to Israel's economic siege, which is used to block the entry of fuel used to operate the Strip's only power plant. The EU also discontinued funding for the plant's fuel in November when it turned funds over to the Fatah party which rules in the West Bank.
The Israeli fuel company has also only allowed a limited supply of fuel to be released to the Strip as Fatah has failed to transfer funds to it.
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6 jan 2012, 09:03 , Respect -
Maria 6 apr 2011
EU Human Right Group Welcomes Egypt Release of Palestinian Prisoners
Norway PNN This week 13 Palestinian political prisoners have been released from Egyptian prisons. The decision came after a campaign carried out by The European Network to support the Rights of Palestinian Prisoners (Ufree).
The European Network to support the Rights of Palestinian Prisoners (UFree) has welcomed the move of the Supreme Military Council of the Egyptian armed forces and the Egyptian government.
Its director, Mohammad Hamdan, has commended the move as a positive step, one that will strengthen the relations between the Palestinian and Egyptian nations. He believes this means that both nations are on the road to achieving stability and security.
The Norwegian based network was the first to raise the issue of the Palestinian prisoners with the Egyptian government. Their work to release the first group of 12 prisoners involved the cooperation with the European Parliament delegation and with a number of European parliamentarians who supported the networks demands.
UFree has stated that this decision would put an end to the suffering of these prisoners and their families. Nonetheless, the Norwegian based network noted that there are further 19 detainees in Egyptian custody. They say they will continue in its efforts alongside other legal and human rights organizations to ensure their release.
Mohammad Hamdan has expressed his appreciation to the Egyptian government's statements and positions of solidarity with the Palestinians, and also its refusal of the continuation of the Israeli siege and collective punishment practiced against the civilian population of the Gaza Stip.
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Egypt invites Mishaal, Shallah to visit Cairo
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egypt is planning to invite a number of Palestinian factions and independent figures to visit Cairo in the few coming days to discuss reactivating reconciliation efforts, senior Egyptian diplomatic sources revealed on Wednesday.
They said that the invitations would start with businessman Munib Al-Masri and a delegation of the reconciliation committee that he chairs, then to the Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shallah, and would conclude with inviting Hamas supreme leader Khaled Mishaal to push forward the reconciliation process.
The sources said that the Egyptian effort aims at saving the reconciliation and ending the Palestinian rift in addition to discussing means of dealing with future Zionist threats.
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Egypt FM: Gaza a priority in Egypt foreign policy
GAZA, (PIC)-- Nabil al-Arabi, who was named foreign minister after Egyptian revolution has confirmed that issues concerning Gaza are a priority to Egypt's foreign policy.
We consider the situation in the Gaza Strip a priority for Egypt, especially since what has happened there is unacceptable in terms of human rights, Mr. Arabi said during a joint press release with Austrian foreign minister Michael Spindelegger Tuesday night in Cairo.
We are now working to establish a method to deal with those situations. Those committees could finalize works this weekend. We are discussing this issue with all sectors of the state in Egypt, he said.
Arabi said that Egypt also has strong interest in Palestinian reconciliation and has contacted both Hamas and Fatah to discuss it. He added that Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas is scheduled to visit Egypt on Wednesday to discuss all issues pending reconciling with Hamas. He had already met with a delegation from Hamas last week.
Arabi met Wednesday morning with independent figures in Palestine in a delegation headed by Dr. Yasser al-Wadia and held talks about Palestinian unity and the future of Palestinian issues in light of current developments in the Arab world.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian coalition to break the siege and rebuild Gaza was turned back by officials as it tried to get ten tons of cement into the Gaza Strip through the Rafah land port on the border with Egypt.
The coalition had clinched a deal in March with the British Aloha Palestine to import the cement to Gaza as the first formal deal to bring building materials into Gaza through Egypt. The deal came after European activists successfully got the first back of cement through the border crossing.
Based on the agreement, Aloha Palestine was responsible for transporting the goods according to Egyptian commercial laws, while the coalition's part was to place popular pressure in order to get permission for the trucks to enter.
After two weeks of stay in the El-Arish city near the border, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, to whom power was shifted in Egypt, rejected repeated requests and mediation to bring in the building supplies needed in a war torn and besieged Gaza Strip. They were forced to leave the city after incurring heavy losses.
The coalition promised after the January 25 revolution in Egypt to meet with the new Egyptian foreign miniser Arabi and the the Supreme Council to brief them on the deal and ask for ease in bringing in the goods and arranging for larger future deals that would widen horizons for the economies of Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
The Camp David accords that Egypt has signed with Israel has prohibited Egypt from using the Rafah crossing for commercial purposes.
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UFree network lauds Cairo for releasing 13 Palestinians from its jails
GAZA, (PIC)-- The European network to support rights of Palestinian prisoners, UFree, hailed the Egyptian authorities for releasing 13 Palestinian prisoners from local jails, calling for taking further step by closing this file once and for all.
"We bless this positive step which contributes to strengthening relations between the Palestinian and Egyptian peoples on the road to stability and security," Mohamed Hamdan, head of UFree network, stated in a press release on Tuesday.
Hamdan noted that UFree had raised the issue of Palestinians imprisoned in Egyptian jails with the Egyptian government in cooperation with some European lawmakers who visited Egypt lately.
19 Palestinians are still in Egyptian prisons, the UFree official said, but there are continuous efforts to have all Palestinians released and close this file forever.
He also appealed to the ruling military council and the new government in Egypt to develop new policies protecting the Palestinians' dignity during their stay or travel through Egyptian territories and ending the blockade imposed on them in Gaza.
In this regard, spokesman for the families of Palestinian prisoners in Egyptian jails Imad Assayed affirmed the arrival of 12 Palestinians in Gaza after their release on Tuesday from local prisons in Egypt.
"We confirm the arrival of 12 Palestinian detainees at the Palestinian side coming from Egypt, while one prisoner was deported to the United Arab Emirates by the Egyptian authorities," spokesman Assayed told the Palestinian information center (PIC).
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Egypt releases 13 Gazan prisoners
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XxAjvpctuE
Families of 13 Palestinians from Gaza were finally reunited with their loved ones at the Rafah crossing, on the border with Egypt. They had to wait three days to see their sons.
On Sunday, Egyptian security sources announced the release of fourteen Palestinians. But only thirteen of them made it to the Gaza Strip.
At least twenty five Palestinians ar estill in Egyptian prisons.
A woman whose three sons and husband are still in Egyptian custody had this to say.
The government of Hamas has welcomed the move by Egypt, expressing appreciation for the Egyptian military council.
Senior Hamas officials who met with Egyptian officials last week, requested the release of the detainees.
The political prisoners hada been in prison without charges or trial.
Since former Egyptian president Husni Mubarak's ouster more than 20 Palestinian detainees in Egypt have returned to the Gaza Strip, some of whom escaped during the uprising in the country and others were released
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8 jan 2012, 10:37 , Respect -
Maria 8 apr 2011
Egyptians march on Israeli embassy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eb6v3ZpQ-DY
Meanwhile protesters amass once again at Tahrir Square, calling to prosecute Mubarak, family.
Egypt's protesters stepped up their challenge to the country's ruling military Friday, as tens of thousands massed demanding it prosecute ousted president Hosni Mubarak and his family for alleged corruption, while a smaller group tested out the army's tolerance with a march on Israel's embassy.
The mass rally in Cairo's central Tahrir Square was the biggest by protesters in weeks. A smaller group of more than 1,000 marched on the Israeli Embassy, angered by strikes on the Gaza Strip earlier in the day, and pushed for Egypt's new rulers to close the mission and stop Egypt's natural gas exports to Israel.
The march was the first significant anti-Israeli demonstration since Egypt's upheaval began nearly three months ago, and it was an unusual test of the military, which took power after Mubarak's ouster on Feb. 11. The generals have promised Egyptians greater freedom of expression but at the same time have sought to reassure Israel and its ally the United States that the fall of Mubarak would not mean an anti-Israeli turn in Egypt's foreign policy.
In the past, Mubarak's security forces strictly prevented any protests from getting anywhere close to the embassy, located in a residential building overlooking a bridge over the Nile. Soldiers Friday allowed the demonstration to get nearer than others in the past, to a checkpoint meters away from the building. At the same time, officers at the checkpoint tried to convince the crowd to disperse.
"Enough, we have your demands!" one officer told the protesters.
At the checkpoint, the crowd waved Palestinian flags and banners that called for Egypt to stop selling natural gas to Israel and close the embassy. Some were members of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood, who earlier in the day had been leading anti-Israel chants among the crowds in Tahrir and burned an Israeli flag there.
"Remove the flag before we remove it!" protesters chanted, referring to the Israeli flag on the top floor of the building. Tanks and armored vehicles, along with armed Egyptian military police, were stationed at the building's entrance. After several hours, the demonstration dwindled.
The Israel-Arab issue has not featured strongly in the 18 day wave of mass protests that led to Mubarak's ouster or in demonstrations since by activists trying to shape the transition period being led by the military. The focus has been more on uprooting Mubarak's authoritarian regime and ensuring a democratic Egypt emerges. Still, the protests have been interspersed with complaints about Mubarak's close ties with Israel, which remains deeply unpopular among Egyptians.
Meanwhile, in Tahrir Square, the crowd shouted, "Execution, execution," as others accused the army of protecting Mubarak and giving immunity to his family, a claim the military denies.
On a stage, protesters set up a cage with the pictures of Mubarak, his family and top aides inside. An activist read out charges against them, and the crowd responded, "We testify that Mubarak, his family and their cronies have corrupted Egypt, politically, economically, impoverished the people and committed crimes of torture and killings."
"He lives in a palace and our poor still in the shanty towns," one protester chanted in a microphone at the square. "We are not leaving here until Mubarak is on trial," another speaker vowed.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054175,00.html
22 jan 2012, 16:45 , Respect -
Maria 9 apr 2011
Anti-Israel rally turns violent in Cairo
Over one million Egyptian protesters in Cairo's Liberation Square demanded their military rulers to abandon Israel and lift the blockade on the besieged Gaza Strip on Friday.
Fierce clashes have erupted between the Egyptian army and thousands of protesters who gathered outside the Israeli embassy in the capital Cairo to demand severing of all ties with Tel Aviv.
Over one million Egyptian protesters in Cairo's Liberation Square demanded their military rulers to abandon Israel and lift the blockade on the besieged Gaza Strip on Friday. Thousands broke away from the crowd and marched toward the Israeli embassy, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Intense confrontations took place in front of the heavily guarded compound as protesters shouted "Bring down the flag, we don't want it," referring to the Israeli flag on top of the Israeli embassy's building.
Protesters vented their rage at Tel Aviv by burning the Israeli flag and demanding the liberation of Palestine, and promised to stand by Gazans, who have been suffering Israeli's constant aggression and its four-year long crippling siege, the Press TV correspondent added.
The recent Israeli attacks on the impoverished Gaza Strip since Thursday, which have caused a total of 18 casualties and dozens of injuries, lit the fuse for the massive demonstration.
The protesters also called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador in crisis-hit Egypt.
The development comes two months after a historic revolution ousted former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
The protesters also demanded the prosecution of Egyptian officials belonging to the former regime -- mainly the ousted President Mubarak and his family.
Reports say that military police used tear gas and batons and fired shots to defuse the protest, which marked the biggest demonstration since the ouster of the former president.
Egypt's toppled regime under Mubarak served the interests of Israel by assisting and keeping silent on the killing of Gazans.
Egypt has imposed a blockade on Gaza since the democratically elected Hamas government took control of the territory in 2007. Since then Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on the territory triggering a humanitarian crisis.
A major Egyptian political party, the Muslim Brotherhood, has recently demanded that the country's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces take action in breaking the siege of Gaza.
This is while Israeli officials have been repeatedly threatening to launch a fresh major offensive against Gaza.
They say such an onslaught could be even more destructive and deadly than the one at the turn of 2009, which killed over 1,400 Palestinians -- many of them women and children.
Poverty, unemployment, lack of medicine and medical equipment are the main issues in the Gaza Strip, while most Palestinian children are physically stunted from malnutrition.
Human rights groups have also criticized the international community for its silence on the siege on Gaza and the 22-day Israeli war in December 2008 that shattered the stagnant economy of the territory.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/173818.html
Angered Arabi says Israel must commit to calm
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil al-Arabi called for an urgent meeting on Friday evening, that included his aides and Arab diplomats, to discuss developments in the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Israeli aggression culminated that day in the killing of five Palestinians and the injury of more than 30 others after raids were carried out against several civilian targets and structures. Medical crews were some of those targets. Israel has threatened to continue the escalation using various means.
The Egyptian foreign minister requested the said meeting as he was angered over what was happening in Gaza, Egyptian diplomats told the Palestinian Information Center. He had also contacted several foreign ministers from other Arab countries.
Arabi expressed worry over the recent escalation on the Strip and said that Egypt strongly condemned the Israeli air strikes and missiles fired at several sites there.
He also said that Egypt had exerted great efforts to stop the escalation between the Palestinians and the Israelis before the situation worsens.
We hope everyone will commit to the calm for the sake of the safety and security of their citizens, he said.
Earlier at noon, more than 2,000 Egyptians gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Cairo demanding an exit of the ambassador and closure of the embassy.
Hundreds had prior to that burned Israeli flags in Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo. Pro-Palestinians marched there and demanded an end to the Israeli siege on Gaza, an opening of the Rafah border crossing and that Palestine tops the Egyptian list of foreign priorities.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Brotherhood group in Egypt has called on Arab and Muslim governments to address and put an end to the Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip.
Statements expected to be issued by the Arab world and the international community condemning the attacks are no longer enough to stop the bloodshed of people innocent and besieged for years, said Dr. Moussa Mursi, the group's media spokesman.
He called for financial and military support of the Palestinian resistance fighters, also appealing to de facto Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to respond quickly without limitation or condition to reconciliation efforts, which are mong the prime targets in the current Israeli onslaught.
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...Read more 26 jan 2012, 12:30 , Respect -
Maria 10 apr 2011
Foreign Ministry lauds Egyptian stance against Israeli aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has lauded Egypt for helping to protect the Palestinians during the recent Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has demanded an end to Israeli violence and restoration of calm in the region, the ministry confirmed in a statement on Sunday.
The massacres perpetrated by the [Israeli occupier] in Gaza call for a serious stand from the Arab and Islamic nation at the leadership and popular levels so as to ensure an end to the aggression and expose the [Israeli occupier's] practices, the statement says.
The ministry said it has mobilized from the first moments of aggression to reveal the seriousness of the situation to the world and create a high-profile political movement in order to curb the attack.
Meanwhile, more than ten thousand students at the esteemed Al-Azhar University in Cairo have taken to the streets to condemn the massacre of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Organized by students from the Muslim Brotherhood, the demonstrators waived Palestinian flags next to Egyptian ones and roared several pro-Palestinian phrases that shook Nasr city, which runs along university city where they marched.
Events ended at midnight Saturday after they prayed in congregation for those who have died in Gaza and in the January 25 revolution and for the defeat of Israel.
http://fwd4.me/zMa
AL proposes no-fly zone over Gaza
Arab League's Secretary General Amr Moussa
Amid successive deadly attacks by Israel on the Gaza Strip, the Arab League plans to press the United Nations to impose a no-fly zone over the coastal sliver.
The organization's Secretary General Amr Moussa said on Sunday that he plans to present the UN Security Council with the proposal, AFP reported.
The Israeli military has been launching back-to-back attacks on the impoverished enclave over the past four days, killing more than 19 Palestinians and injuring over a dozen others.
Tel Aviv has been recurrently bombarding Gaza ever since its 22-day war on the impoverished enclave in December 2008 and January 2009, which killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and inflicted a damage of $1.6 billion on the region's already-stagnant economy.
The offensives are often launched under the usual pretext of responding to the firing of projectiles.
The Israeli hostility rages on while Tel Aviv refuses to lift an all-out blockade it imposed on Gaza in mid-June 2007 in cooperation with the recently ousted regime of Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak.
The siege has deprived the Gaza population of food, fuel and medicine, triggering stunted growth and malnutrition among most Palestinian children.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/174088.html
Arab League wants Gaza no-fly zone
Moussa. New demand
Turkey strongly condemns 'excessive and disproportionate reprisals of Israel that have injured and killed civilians,' urges Jewish state to employ good sense and moderation.
Arab League Chief Amr Mussa said Sunday that the organization would ask the United Nations Security Council to impose a no-fly zone over Gaza, which Israel has pounded with air strikes in response to rocket fire.
Turkey on Sunday denounced what it termed Israel's "excessive and disproportionate" strikes on Gaza in retaliation for a Palestinian antitank missile attack last week.
"We strongly condemn the excessive and disproportionate reprisals of Israel that have injured and killed civilians in Gaza," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement urging Israel to employ good sense and moderation.
"The region cannot be allowed to enter into a new spiral of violence," it added.
Turkish PM Erdogan. Frequent outbursts against Israel
Israel has launched a string of deadly air strikes across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 18 people and wounding nearly 70, according to Palestinian medical sources, after an antitank missile fired from the coastal enclave hit a school bus in Israel last Thursday, seriously wounding a teenager.
The latest confrontation is the deadliest since an Israeli offensive in December 2008 that claimed the lives of some 1,400 Palestinians.
Relations between Israel and Turkey, once close allies, have sharply deteriorated in recent years amid Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's frequent outbursts against Israeli policies towards the Palestinians
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4054848,00.html
4 feb 2012, 13:53 , Respect -
Maria 11 apr 2011
Bahar demands expediting the no-fly zone decision
GAZA, (PIC)-- First deputy speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Dr. Ahmed Bahar has urged the Arab League to expedite issuing a UN Security Council resolution imposing a no-fly zone over the Gaza Strip to protect Palestinian civilians from Israeli crimes.
Describing the decision as an advanced step in the right direction, he said in a press release on Monday that it would pave the way before isolating Israel in the international arena.
He asked the Arab League to rally international support for the decision and to discuss its implementation mechanics.
Bahar stressed the importance of implementing Arab League resolutions concerning ending the siege on Gaza, opening the Rafah crossing permanently, and starting reconstruction of the beleaguered Strip.
In an earlier statement on Monday while extending condolences to the martyrs of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, he blamed the feeble position of the international community for the recent Israeli military escalation against Gaza.
Bahar also said that resistance is guaranteed for all peoples under occupation by international law, adding that all Palestinian resistance factions were united in one trench against the Israeli aggression.
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Haneyya: Arab, int'l parties vowed to curb Israeli aggression
GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian Prime Minister in Gaza Ismail Haneyya has confirmed that Arab and international parties have vowed to intervene to curb Israel's recent aggression on the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian government in Gaza has made extensive contacts with Arab, regional and international parties in order to stop the Zionist aggression on the Strip and curb the [Israeli occupier's] crimes on the Palestinians, he said.
We've seen positive progress we hope will be a clear stance to stop the innocent Palestinian bloodshed, he said, calling for further mobilization from the Arabs and Muslims to pressure Israeli leaders.
This is renewed evidence of the war crimes committed by the [Israeli occupier], which requires a speedy trial according to applicable regulations in international law, Haneyya said.
The blood of children, women and the elderly, and the attacks on medical teams and people's homes will only increase our people's firmness and adherence to their rights, land, holy sites and leaders.
Palestinian factions have agreed to maintain a truce as long as Israel ceases fire and stops its military attacks on the Palestinians, while reserving the right to respond to any attacks Israel may launch against either civilians or resistance fighters.
The factions said the position is based on its commitment to the interests of the Palestinians and to ensure that Israel loses the opportunity to launch a major military operation on the Strip. But the resistance forces have emphasized the need to stay on alert, according to a statement by the Al-Quds Brigades,the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad movement in Gaza.
Israeli military minister Ehud Barak said Sunday Israel is willing to stop military operations against the Strip, as long as the truce is maintained.
http://fwd4.me/zQv
Arabi: Palestinian reconciliation a priority
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian foreign minister Dr. Nabil Al-Arabi has said that resolving the inter-Palestinian rift was a main priority for his country in the upcoming stage.
Arabi, after meeting with a delegation of the carter center for the settlement of disputes on Monday, said that Egypt was keen on contacting all parties to reach this end.
Minha Bakhum, the spokesperson for the Egyptian foreign ministry, said that the delegates thanked Cairo for facilitating their recent trip to the Gaza Strip.
She said that the delegation members briefed Arabi on results of their visit to Gaza and the humanitarian conditions there. They also discussed progress of reconciliation talks.
Arabi conferred on Sunday evening with Robert Serry, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace, for a discussion on the Israeli military escalation and efforts to restore calm.
The Egyptian chief diplomat affirmed his country's keenness on restoring calm to save lives, noting that his country was still making contacts aimed at stabilizing the calm.
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Egypt stops building steel wall along Gaza
CAIRO, (UPI) -- Egypt halted construction of an underground steel wall designed to stop weapons smuggling along its border with Gaza, Israeli defense officials said.
Construction of the 6.2-mile barrier was suspended after the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak in February, officials told The Jerusalem Post
Israel has told the new Egyptian government it should uphold the position of the previous government in preventing the flow of arms into the Gaza Strip, the newspaper reported.
Some Israeli officials said halting the construction was not coincidental. They said Egypt has been trying to strengthen ties with Hamas and cited a recent visit by Hamas Foreign Minister Mahmoud al-Zahar to Cairo, where he met with Egyptian politicians as well as intelligence and military officials, as evidence of the improving relationship.
"There is a new relationship between Hamas and Cairo today. This is likely connected to the upcoming elections and the understanding in Egypt that the Muslim Brotherhood is a strong player and as a result it is important to maintain contacts with Hamas," one official told The Post.
Egypt began building the wall in 2009.
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5 feb 2012, 18:44 , Respect -
Maria 13 apr 2011
Egypt PM orders gas contract price review
Egypt's official MENA news agency says the country's premier has ordered a price review of the much-criticized contracts to supply natural gas to Israel and Jordan.
MENA quoted Prime Minister Essam Sharaf's spokesman, Ahmed el-Samman as saying that the revision is aimed at bringing in the greatest returns for Egypt. El-Samman said revised contracts could boost income by $3 billion to $4 billion.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4056565,00.html
Egypt to revise all foreign gas deals, including Israel's
CAIRO (AFP) -- Egypt's prime minister has asked for the revision off all contracts to supply gas abroad, including to Israel, the official news agency MENA reported on Wednesday.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=378517
Meshaal and Shalah to visit Cairo within days
Baraka
Hamas' representative in Lebanon, Ali Baraka, confirmed that Cairo has extended an invitation to their movement's political bureau chief, Khaled Meshaal, and the Secretary General of Islamic Jihad, Ramadan Abdallah Shalah, to visit Egypt as part of efforts to end Palestinian division and achieve reconciliation among the factions.
Baraka told Quds Press that the escalation of Israeli aggression "requires urgent reconciliation, as a matter of national priority." He said that Hamas has started taking necessary steps in preparation for the reconciliation since Prime Minister Ismail Haniyyeh invited President Mahmoud Abbas to visit Gaza.
He added that Egypt has expressed its agreement and support for Hamas' initiative during Hamas member, Mahmoud Zahhar's, recent visit to Egypt. According to Baraka, Fatah's leader, Mahmoud Abbas, along with the leaders of a number of other Palestinian factions also visited Egypt for the same purposes.
Baraka stressed that in the coming few days, Hamas' political bureau chief, Khaled Meshaal, and the Secretary General of Islamic Jihad, Ramadan Abdallah Shalah, would visit Egypt to engage in discussions. He mentioned that Egypt is busy with its internal affairs, but that it also welcomes the Palestinian factions.
Regarding the recent assertions that there are differences in Hamas' positions in Gaza and the West Bank - especially after Abbas' meeting with Hamas members of parliament - Baraka stated that this is "an old symphony that Fatah is relying on. But Hamas' position is unified, and is supportive of the reconciliation that is considered to be binding for all the movement's members everywhere."
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11 feb 2012, 20:11 , Respect -
Maria 16 apr 2011
Independents to update Hamas, Fatah on Cairo talks
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A group of independent Palestinian political figures will meet with Hamas and Fatah to update them on their efforts to reconcile the parties in Cairo, said Abdul Aziz Ash-Shaqaqi, head of the delegation.
The group is part of a non-affiliated movement to pressure an end to Palestinian internal division. They met with Egyptian and Arab leaders to discuss ways to achieve national Palestinian unity and ease the siege on Gaza.
Ash-Shaqaqi said the delegation told Egyptian officials about ongoing efforts to break the deadlock in reconciliation efforts between Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip and Fatah, which leads the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.
The independent figures also met with President Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo, Ash-Shaqaqi said.
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16 feb 2012, 21:44 , Respect -
Maria 17 apr 2011
Arabi discusses Gaza conditions with Ihsanoglu
CAIRO, (PIC)-- The Palestine cause and the Israeli aggression on Gaza Strip topped the agenda of talks between Egyptian foreign minister Nabil Al-Arabi and his guest Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), on Saturday evening.
Egyptian diplomatic sources told the PIC that the discussion focused on means of supplying the besieged enclave with all its humanitarian needs.
They added that Arabi asked Ihsanoglu to direct warning messages to Israel through the OIC member countries against further aggressions on the Strip.
The sources said that Arabi also expressed his country's readiness to assist in entry of humanitarian material to Gaza.
Regional developments especially in Libya, Yemen, and Syria were tackled in the meet during which the Egyptian chief diplomat called for an end to bloodletting and to feudal infighting, the sources said.
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17 feb 2012, 10:56 , Respect -
Maria 18 apr 2011
Arabi fully prepared to allow aid into Gaza
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian FM Nabil al-Arabi has confirmed during a visit by the Egyptian-international coalition to end the Gaza siege that Egypt is fully prepared to help bring humanitarian aid and construction supplies into the Gaza Strip, said Manha Bakhoum spokeswoman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
The FM had made an apparent political agreement to get the goods in through the Rafah border crossing after the issue is brought to the President of the Egyptian government in order to take necessary and appropriate measures.
Separately, Egyptian diplomats have denied reports that arrangements were being made to ensure a visit by Foreign Minister Arabi to the Gaza Strip soon.
They said there are no arrangements for such a visit at the present time.
The statements came after rumors spread in both Palestinian and Egyptian media that Arabi was geared to go to Gaza to support Palestinian reconciliation efforts undertaken by Cairo and to give Gaza support against potential Israeli aggression.
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Egyptian FM to visit West Bank
CAIRO (Ma'an) -- The Egyptian Foreign Minister was invited to visit the West Bank, the country's ambassador to the Palestinian Authority Yaser Othman said Sunday, and will accept the invitation with arrangements to be made in the coming weeks.
Minister Nabil Al-Arabi's visit will follow President Mahmoud Abbas' extended visit to Cairo, where he met with officials and gave updates on the Palestinian political situation, speaking also about the continued state of division between the Palestinian political factions.
The visit to Palestine will not likely include a stop in Gaza, the spokesman said, citing continued issues with the unity file.
The minister could eventually accompany Abbas on his visit to Gaza, Othman said, though a March 16 invitation from Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh to Abbas was accepted, but no date for the visit set.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=379728
28 feb 2012, 09:49 , Respect -
Maria 22 aug 2011
Egypt to probe gas sales to Israel
Egypt's former Energy Minister Sameh Fahmy
Egypt's prosecutor orders the country's ex-energy ministers detained for questioning over a controversial gas deal with Israel under the rule of ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
The Egyptian public prosecutor on Thursday issued the arrest warrants against former Energy Minister Sameh Fahmy and two of his predecessors, Reuters reported.
Israel gets 40 percent of its natural gas from Egypt, under an arrangement put in place after a 1979 US-pushed 'peace' deal.
Four Israeli firms have signed agreements to import Egyptian natural gas under a 20-year contract.
The deal has been repeatedly challenged in Egyptian courts as it was signed without a parliamentary consultation and approval.
Opposition groups have long complained that Egyptian gas was sold to Israel at below-market prices.
Egyptian chief prosecutor earlier said he possessed evidence that Mubarak and Fahmy had sold natural gas to the Israeli regime and several Western countries at below-market rates.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/176037.html
Nuno: Our relationship with Egypt strategic
GAZA, (PIC)-- Tahir Al-Nuno, the spokesman of the Palestinian government in the Gaza Strip, has stressed Thursday that his government was and still is keen on building strong and healthy relationship with Egypt, describing the Palestinian-Egyptian ties as strategic.
"We understand the priorities of the Egyptian government at this point of time as it focuses on arranging the Egyptian internal home after the great developments that had occurred, and we believe that Egypt carries very important files as far as the Palestinian issue is concerned," Nuno said as he met with Baha'a Al- Dusoki, the chairman of Palestine department in the Egyptian foreign affairs ministry, in Cairo where they discussed a number of issues, including the Rafah crossing point.
In this regard, Nuno expressed the confidence of the Palestinian government in Egypt's ability in dealing with the Palestinian reconciliation file, stressing his government's keenness on achieving that reconciliation.
"The Palestinian people and government totally support Egypt till it reaches the state of complete stability," Nuno said, stressing the urgency of taking a number of measures to facilitate travel across the Rafah crossing point being the only gateway that links the Gaza Strip with the rest of the world.
For his part, Dusoki stressed Egypt's keenness on achieving the Palestinian reconciliation and to restore Palestinian unity and that won't relax till such things are realized.
On the issue of the Rafah crossing, Dusoki explained that Egypt was mulling a number of measures that could facilitate the movement of the Palestinian people through it without giving Israel any chance to benefit from it, saying that such measures won't take long time although they were linked with certain factors that Egypt is trying to achieve.
http://fwd4.me/006u
...Read more 1 mar 2012, 13:54 , Respect -
Maria 23 apr 2011
Official: The gas agreement with Israel invalid if Mubarak was guilty
CAIRO, (PIC)-- A top Egyptian judicial official revealed that the interrogation of ousted president Hosni Mubarak about the issue of gas exports to Israel may re-open the file of the gas agreement between the two governments.
The official told the Palestinian information center (PIC) that in the event Mubarak was proved guilty of wasting public money regarding the issue of gas exports to Israel, the whole agreement would be revoked and considered detrimental to Egypt's higher interests.
He said the sole beneficiary of the gas agreement was the former regime and Israel, so it could be canceled or at least would be changed in a way serving Egypt's interests.
The Egyptian public prosecutor Abdulmajeed Mahmoud decided on Friday to extend the detention of Mubarak for 15 days for further investigation.
http://fwd4.me/00AT
Haneyya: My visit to Cairo is possible
GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian premier Ismail Haneyya said he could pay a visit to Cairo in order to meet with Egyptian officials, but he did not confirm that.
Haneyya told Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper that his visit to Cairo would be aimed primarily to address the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip.
Haneyya has not made a visit to Cairo or to any other country since the events of June 2007.
The premier hailed the current Egyptian positions following the success of the revolution by saying that Egypt has a new spirit regarding its policies, especially with regard to its relations with the Gaza Strip.
As for the inter-Palestinian reconciliation, he said the efforts in this regard are at a standstill and the positions of Fatah and its authority in Ramallah are not encouraging.
http://fwd4.me/009m
Egypt: Reaching Palestinian National Unity is Essential for Achieving Statehood
Fatah - Hamas talks
Saturday Egyptian ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Othman, re-iterated his countries commitment to achieving the Palestinian National unity.
Othman said that Egypt considers reaching national unity among Palestinian factions manly Fatah and Hamas is needed to achieve the independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
On supporting the Palestinian notion in the UN to recognize the state on September ambassador Othman announced that his country fully supports it and will do what is necessary to help the Palestinian Authority to achieve its goal.
Fatah, headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and the Islamic movement, Hamas, are at loggerheads since Hamas took over Gaza in the summer of 2006. Hamas won the Palestinian elections in January 2006, months later the movement ended months of bloody fighting with Fatah by taking control of Gaza.
Earlier this year President Abbas proposed to end the right with Hamas via elections; Hamas refused and insisted on reaching a national unity deal before any elections take place. Egypt has been the host of Fatah/Hamas talks for over two years, but no agreement has been reached so far.
http://fwd4.me/009l
Egypt to release 9 Palestinians within days
GAZA CITY (Ma'an) Egypt will release a number of Palestinians within 48 hours, said well-informed sources on the issue of Palestinians imprisoned in Egyptian jails.
Egypt has informed families of the detainees that nine of them will be released Monday. Nearly half were freed since the overthrow of Egypt's Hosni Mubarak earlier this year.
Imad As-Sayed, spokesman of detainees' families, said 36 have been freed so far.
http://fwd4.me/009e
4 mar 2012, 08:27 , Respect -
Maria 24 apr 2011
Remember Palestine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGrLXRE1_9w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjF1Ayl3rtc
This episode of Remember Palestine takes a closer look at the changing face of Egyptian-Israeli relations as the pressures on Egyptian officials to open the Rafah crossing remain strong.
It also refers to the continuing works of activists for human rights in Gaza in the wake of Italian activist Vittorio Arrigoni's murder, and asks what impact this crime has had on international activists' work in the region.
4 mar 2012, 08:27 , Respect -
Maria 25 apr 2011
Egypt set to have close ties with Iran
An Egyptian official has stressed Cairo's resolve to establish prominent ties with Tehran, saying that such determination is unwavering and cannot be manipulated by a third party.
In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, the Egyptian Prime Minister's spokesman, Ahmed el-Samman, said that Egypt will open a new chapter in its relations with other countries, including Iran, based on mutual respect. It will no longer accept the restrictions introduced by the former regime, Fars News Agency reported on Monday.
Samman added that Persian Gulf littoral states had no need to worry about the growing relations between Egypt and Iran, as such relations would not harm them.
He stressed that Cairo would not accept foreign pressure in its relations with Tehran.
The remarks came after the United Arab Emirates expressed concern over signs of warming ties between Egypt and Iran.
Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf is currently in the Saudi capital of Riyadh as part of a tour of regional countries aimed at forging stronger political relations and bilateral cooperation between Egypt and Mideast states. He is also scheduled to discuss the Palestinian issue with regional leaders.
He reportedly cancelled his visit to the United Arab Emirates after Abu Dhabi voiced discontent over the trial proceedings of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.
Iran and Egypt have not had diplomatic relations since 1980. Iran severed ties with Egypt after Cairo signed the 1978 Camp David Accords with the Israeli regime and offered asylum to Iran's former Shah, Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi.
Mubarak and his two sons, Alaa and Gamal, are now in detention as part of an inquiry into the use of force against protesters during the popular uprising in January and February.
Alaa and Gamal Mubarak are also accused of embezzlement of public funds.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/176657.html