Egyptian FM says Israel's attacks on Gaza beyond legitimate self-defense

CAIRO, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Thursday that Israel's ongoing strikes on the Gaza Strip had gone beyond the legitimate right to self-defense, labeling such attacks as serious "violations of international humanitarian law."

Shoukry made the remarks during an international conference in Paris on the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Gaza, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The Egyptian top diplomat reiterated Egypt's call for "an immediate and sustainable cease-fire."

"We denounce all practices that aim to impose a new fait accompli to forcibly displace, transfer, and deport Palestinians from their land, as the number of displaced people in Gaza has reached two-thirds of its population," he was quoted as saying.

Israel struck Gaza in retaliation for a cross-border Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants took about 240 hostages. The bloody conflict has so far led to the deaths of at least 10,569 Palestinians in Gaza and killed more than 1,400 people in Israel.

Ground operations by the Israeli military and continued bombardment are hitting civilians in Gaza, which is under a tight siege for over a month now, with lack of shelter, food, water, fuel, electricity, and health facilities.

Shoukry said that even providing a safe corridor for Gaza's civilians to move from the north to the south of the enclave "is not a positive development, but rather a continuation of displacement in violation of international humanitarian law."

He also expressed his country's rejection of the double-standard policies of "some countries" biased toward Israel.

Since Oct. 21, after Israel's approval, Egypt has sent hundreds of humanitarian aid trucks to the besieged enclave via the Rafah border crossing, donated by Egyptian institutions and NGOs as well as other countries and organizations.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said on Thursday that it had received a total of 756 relief trucks so far.

Shoukry noted that Egypt alone donated about 5,400 tons of aid supplies to Gaza despite the country's economic challenges, urging the international community for more contributions.

Moreover, he stressed "the settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will only be achieved on the basis of the two-state solution and the international legitimacy resolutions."

Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979 and has for many years been a key peace mediator in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.