Arab Canada News
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Published: September 5, 2024
The Egyptian "Cairo News" Channel reported on Thursday that the Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces, General Ahmed Khalifa, made an unexpected visit to inspect the security situation and measures to secure the borders with the Gaza Strip.
This visit was revealed by the spokesperson for the Egyptian Armed Forces, Colonel Ghareeb Abdel Hafiz.
Tensions rose between Egypt and Israel in the previous days due to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on keeping Israeli forces in the Philadelphi Corridor, which separates the Gaza Strip from Egypt.
On Wednesday, Netanyahu stated that Israel would not agree to a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip unless it guaranteed that the border area between southern Gaza and Egypt (the Philadelphi Corridor) would not be used as a lifeline for Hamas.
The Philadelphi Corridor, which runs along the southern edge of the Gaza Strip on the border with Egypt, represents one of the main obstacles to reaching an agreement for ending the fighting in Gaza and releasing Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Netanyahu faced severe criticism from many in Israel for his insistence on this, including many senior security officials in his government who believe that Israeli forces are capable of targeted intervention if necessary to prevent any smuggling.
Netanyahu also faced accusations from the families of many hostages, including those of the six hostages whose bodies were recovered from a tunnel in southern Gaza on Sunday, of sacrificing their loved ones by insisting on keeping forces in the Philadelphi Corridor.
The Hamas attack on October 7 resulted in the death of 1,205 people on the Israeli side, most of whom were civilians, according to a count by AFP based on official data.
Israel vowed to "eradicate" Hamas. Since then, it has responded with bombings and ground operations in the Gaza Strip that have killed at least 40,861 people, according to the Hamas Health Ministry. The United Nations confirms that the majority of the dead are women and children.
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