Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is set to host Jordan’s King Abdullah II for a high-stakes summit on Thursday, responding to the escalating violence in the neighboring Gaza Strip, according to the Egyptian presidency.
In a statement released by the Jordanian royal court, the two leaders will convene to address the ongoing Israeli aggression in Gaza, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The conflict in the region escalated when Hamas militants launched a significant attack on southern Israeli communities on October 7. Israeli authorities claim this attack resulted in over 1,400 casualties, predominantly civilians. However, the Hamas-controlled health ministry asserts that the Israeli strikes have led to the deaths of 3,478 people in the besieged Palestinian enclave, with most of them being civilians.
Initially, the summit was scheduled to include talks with US President Joe Biden and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas in Jordan later this week. However, Jordan canceled the meeting following a deadly strike on a Gaza hospital.
The summit between President al-Sisi and King Abdullah coincides with the visit of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to Cairo.
During a meeting with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly in Cairo on Thursday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry emphasized the priority of delivering humanitarian and emergency aid to the people of Gaza.
President al-Sisi also discussed the situation in Gaza with US Central Command Chief Michael Kurilla, according to his office.
Both Egypt and Jordan were pioneers in normalizing relations with Israel, with Egypt doing so in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. Since then, these two nations have played crucial roles as mediators between Israeli and Palestinian officials in the turbulent region.
