Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi urged the international community to recognize Palestine as a country. He made the announcement on Friday during a joint press conference with the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium in Cairo.
Furthermore, according to El-Sisi, reviving the process to end the conflict in the Middle East, "may not be what is required".
An alternative strategy would entail "the recognition of the Palestinian state by the international community and bringing it into the United Nations... This would show seriousness," Egypt's president added.
He also cited the large number of civilian deaths in the subsequent Gaza battles as evidence that the "political horizons for resolving the Palestinian cause always failed" to meet the expectations of the Palestinian people.
In addition, speaking about the post-war phase, El-Sisi supported the idea of demilitarizing Palestine and providing international guarantees to ensure security for both Palestine and Israel.
El-Sisi's speech coincided with the start of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that will see the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli detention facilities in exchange for the release of hostages that Hamas had captured in Israel.
As part of the first stage of the four-day truce, a group of 13 Israeli hostages — women and children — were handed over to the Israeli authorities. Israel, in turn, released 39 Palestinian prisoners, including 24 women.
Qatar, with support from Egypt and the US, brokered the four-day ceasefire agreement, which was reached nearly seven weeks after the long-lasting conflict escalated on October 7 when Gaza militants launched an unprecedented attack on Israeli territory.
In response to this, Israel launched a ground operation in Gaza that has killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including more than 6,150 children, according to the Gaza Strip government's press office. The Jewish state has lost about 1,200 people since October 7, according to Israeli officials.