PM Modi addresses the president of Egypt as Israeli airstrikes pound Gaza and highlight the region's security danger

PM Modi addresses the president of Egypt as Israeli airstrikes pound Gaza and highlight the region's security danger

A spokesman for the Egyptian presidency stated on Facebook on Saturday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi had a phone discussion during which they discussed the "Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip" that are currently underway.

The post's rough translation read as follows: "President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi accepted a phone call from Narendra Modi, the leader of the government of India, in which the two leaders compared views on the latest developments in Israeli combat operations in the Gaza Strip."

The leaders also spoke about the "dangers" that the area may face from the present situation's escalation, he said. They also discussed "the threat it poses to the security" and the war's grave effects on civilian life.

In order to save civilian lives and for humanitarian supplies to reach the areas affected by violence as soon as possible and without hindrance or delay, an urgent humanitarian ceasefire must be implemented, according to the spokesman.

The leaders further expressed their approval of the "outstanding level of bilateral relations particularly strategic partnership between Egypt particularly India, and their determination to continue directing the institutions of the two organizations to further strengthen the collaborative relationship between the two countries" .

Egypt's part in the Israel-Hamas conflict

Because it controls the Rafah border, the only authorized entrance route into the Gaza Strip that is not under Israeli control, Egypt is a major player in the Israel-Hamas battle. 

Israel completely cut off the Gaza Strip, preventing its 2.3 million residents from receiving any food, water, medication, or gasoline, all the while bombing large areas of its towns. According to the news agency Associated Press, it left the Rafah border in Egypt as the only route.

The Times of Israel reported earlier on Saturday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) would permit a substantial increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance to enter the southern Gaza Strip from Egypt.

Additionally, Egypt was pushed by the US to establish humanitarian corridors in the Sinai Peninsula.

Egypt, which has ties to Hamas, a peace treaty with Israel, and strong security cooperation, has assisted in mediating cease-fires between the two sides in the past.

In response to Hamas' assault on October 7, when terrorists broke into southern Israel, massacring hundreds of civilians and troops and taking over 220 captives, Israel began its blockade of Gaza.