ISTANBUL

Egypt and Greece called on Wednesday for a cease-fire deal in the Gaza Strip and stabilizing a fragile truce in Lebanon.

The call came during a meeting in Cairo between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the sidelines of the 10th Trilateral Cooperation Mechanism Summit between Egypt, Greece, and the Greek Cypriot Administration.

Both leaders reiterated their keenness to reach a cease-fire in Gaza to facilitate access to humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave and achieve the two-state solution, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on the enclave that has killed over 45,900 people, mostly women and children, since Oct. 7, 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

Mediation efforts to reach a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner swap deal have failed to make a breakthrough due to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to halt the war.

Talks between the Egyptian and Greek leaders also dwelt on regional issues, including the situation in Libya, Syria and Sudan, according to the Egyptian statement.

Regarding Lebanon, Sisi and Mitsotakis called for stabilizing a fragile cease-fire deal between Israel and Lebanon and implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

UN Resolution 1701, adopted in 2006, calls for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah and the establishment of a demilitarized zone between the Blue Line (the Lebanon-Israel border) and the Litani River in southern Lebanon, restricted to Lebanese Army and UNIFIL forces.

Lebanese authorities have reported over 400 Israeli violations, including the death of 32 people and injury of 39 others, since the deal came into force on Nov. 27.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar