Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry landed in Ramallah on Monday in an effort to build on the recent Cairo-brokered ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez said Shoukry, who arrived from Amman, was received by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. Shoukry's visit is part of Egypt's efforts to build on the ceasefire and discuss means of re-engagement in the negotiation path between Israel and Palestinian factions towards the revival of the peace process leading up to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the basis of the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, Hafez stated. The visit will also focus on continued coordination on developments in Palestine and efforts for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip and developmental support for the Palestinian territories, the spokesman said. Shoukry's visit to Ramallah comes hours after he had discussed with Jordan's King Abdullah II in Amman stabilising a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian factions and creating a climate conducive to the urgent revival of the peace negotiations to reach a comprehensive political settlement for the Palestinian crisis. The foreign minister's visit comes as an Egypt-sponsored ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian factions since Friday continues to hold. Egyptian mediators were dispatched to Tel Aviv and the Palestinian territories to follow up on the implementation of the ceasefire. The 11-day fighting was deemed the most vicious since 2014 as Israel upped aggression on Gaza with artillery and air strikes in response to rocket attacks on Israeli towns from the Strip, which is controlled by Hamas. Some 248 people were killed in Gaza, while the death toll in Israel stood at 13.
