Brazilian President arrives in Egypt for Gaza talks

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi welcomed his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, on Thursday for discussions on Gaza during his visit to Egypt.

 

Following his meeting with President Sisi, the Brazilian leader is set to participate in an Arab League Council meeting at the ambassadorial level on the Gaza situation and deliver an address, according to the office of Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit. 

 

Lula strongly criticized Israel's response to Hamas' attack on its territory on October 7, which ignited the ongoing conflict between the two sides in the Gaza Strip, deeming Hamas' attack as "dangerous."

 

Hamas' unprecedented attack resulted in the deaths of more than 1,160 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to a count by Agence France-Presse based on official Israeli figures. 

 

Israel responded with a concentrated bombing campaign followed by a wide-scale ground assault in the territory, resulting in the deaths of 28,576 people in Gaza, mostly women, and children, according to the Hamas-affiliated Ministry of Health. 

 

Egyptian Presidential Spokesman Ahmed Fahmy stated that discussions between Sisi and the Brazilian President will also address "joint coordination in international forums in light of the regional weight of both countries."

 

He noted that Lula's visit to Cairo coincides with the celebration of the centennial anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.