Palestinian displacement ‘red line’ for Egypt, Israel must stop Gaza ‘genocide’: FM

CAIRO – 24 September 2025: Cairo has reaffirmed its firm rejection of “the policies of starvation and genocide” committed by the Israeli forces against Gaza residents, condemning attempts to displace Palestinians from their lands as a “red line for Egypt.”

Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty made the remarks during talks with his Cypriot counterpart, Constantinos Kombos, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Abdelatty reiterated the Palestinian people’s right to remain on their land and to establish their independent state on the 4 June 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Abdelatty called for continued global pressure on Israel to end its aggression on Gaza and stop obstructing humanitarian aid bound for people in the enclave amidst the humanitarian crisis that amounted to famine.

Since the war erupted in October 2023, Egypt has repeatedly rejected US-Israeli schemes to displace Palestinians from Gaza toward the Egyptian territory.

Instead, Egypt, alongside Qatar and the United States, has been mediating talks between Hamas and Israel to reach a ceasefire.

Egypt has also led a $53 billion initiative, endorsed by the Arab and Muslim worlds as well as the European Union for Gaza early recovery and reconstruction, while ensuring Palestinians remain on their lands.

Egypt reaffirmed in August that it will not participate in the displacement of Palestinians, viewing it as "a historical injustice that has no moral or legal justification" and will lead to "the liquidation of the Palestinian cause."

‘Egypt will Not Support Injustice’

Amid recent reports regarding Israeli consultations with certain countries to accept displaced Palestinians, Cairo has called for nations to “refrain from complicity in this immoral crime,” which constitutes “both a war crime and an act of ethnic cleansing.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu drew condemnation from Egypt and a group of Arab countries after stating in an interview early in September that he could allow the people of Gaza to leave through the Rafah crossing, but Egypt will “immediately block” them.

Netanyahu claimed that Egypt is “imprisoning against their will residents in Gaza who want to leave a war zone.”

Egypt’s foreign ministry stated that Netanyahu’s statements are part of ongoing efforts “to prolong the escalation in the region and entrench instability, in an attempt to avoid facing the consequences of Israel’s violations in Gaza, both domestically and internationally.”

Egypt reiterated its firm rejection of “any forced or voluntary displacement of the Palestinian people from their land,” condemning Israel’s “continued targeting of civilians, civil infrastructure, and various aspects of daily life to compel Palestinians to leave.”

“Egypt reaffirms that it will never be a party to this injustice through the liquidation of the Palestinian cause or by serving as a gate for displacement. This matter remains a red line that will not change.”

Israel has intensified its military operations in Gaza, launching a ground invasion of Gaza City, home to nearly half of the enclave’s 2.2 million residents, despite international condemnation.

Israeli forces have flattened buildings, killed scores of Palestinians, and ordered residents of Gaza City to evacuate southward to a so-called "safe zone" in Al-Mawasi, closer to the Egyptian border.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly last week confirmed that the state has developed a range of plans in the event that Palestinians are pushed toward the Egyptian border.