Egypt fears ‘all out’ regional war: foreign minister to AFP

Badr Abdelatty spoke ahead of an annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations – Copyright AFP Bryan R. SMITH

Hashem Osseiran

Egypt’s foreign minister warned Sunday of the risk of an all-out regional war as fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah intensified, saying the escalation “negatively impacted” Gaza truce talks.

Badr Abdelatty spoke ahead of an annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations, with a chorus of international powers calling on Israel and Hezbollah to step back from the brink. 

“There is great concern about… the possibility of an escalation in the region leading to an all-out regional war,” he told AFP at UN headquarters, adding that the latest spike in violence “negatively impacted” ceasefire negotiations.

“But Egypt, along with Qatar and the United States, has complete determination and commitment to continue” efforts to broker a truce agreement, he said.

Qatar, Egypt and the United States have for months tried to secure a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza, which diplomats repeatedly said would help calm regional tensions.

“All the components of the deal are ready,” Abdelatty said. “The problem is the lack of political will on the Israeli side,” he added.

Abdelatty also blamed Israel’s “provocative policies” for the intensified fighting with Hezbollah, a Hamas ally. 

– ‘Stop the escalation’ –

“We are talking to our regional and international partners, including the United States, about the importance of working to stop the escalation and stop the unilateral and provocative policies that Israel is carrying out,” he said.

A regional conflagration “does not serve the interests of any party,” the top diplomat added. 

Abdelatty spoke following meetings in Washington with US officials this week, including White House advisor Amos Hochstein, who is leading efforts to secure a truce between Lebanon and Israel.

Earlier on Wednesday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pledged to step up efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza during talks with visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Blinken said a ceasefire would be the best way to stop violence from spreading in the Middle East.

“We all know that a ceasefire is the best chance to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, to address risks to regional stability,” he said.

It was Blinken’s 10th trip to the region since the start of the war that was sparked by Palestinian armed group Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.

That attack resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures, which includes hostages killed in captivity. 

Out of 251 people taken hostage that day, 97 are still being held inside the Gaza Strip, including 33 who the Israeli military says are dead.

More than 41,431 Palestinians, a majority of them civilians, have been killed in Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip since the war began, according to data provided by the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. The UN has acknowledged these figures as reliable.