Egypt, France call for "urgent solutions" to Gaza conflict

CAIRO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron stressed on Saturday the need for finding "urgent solutions" to the ongoing crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip.

During a phone conversation, the two presidents exchanged views on the latest developments regarding the military escalation in the Palestinian enclave, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement.

The two leaders agreed on the importance of finding urgent solutions to the ongoing crisis and taking action to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid into the besieged Gaza Strip, the statement said.

They also emphasized the importance of starting a comprehensive political process with the aim of reaching a just settlement for the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution.

Sisi stressed the necessity of an immediate ceasefire and the expansion of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza to retaliate against the Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages. According to Gaza's government media office, the Palestinian death toll in the enclave has exceeded 12,000 since the start of the conflict.