Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Fadwa Barghouti in Cairo on Tuesday. Barghouti is the wife of Marwan Barghouti, a senior Fatah figure currently imprisoned by Israel.
At the meeting, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry spoke about Cairo’s tireless efforts to restore calm in the occupied territories and restart the peace process in order to fulfill the just demands of the Palestinian people for an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Ministerial spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid reported that Shoukry had expressed Egypt’s commitment to the welfare of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Barghouti praised Egypt for its support of Palestinian issues on multiple fronts and for its solidarity with Palestinian prisoners.
Her discussion with her Egyptian counterpart comes as Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails have been on a campaign of civil disobedience since February 14 in response to national security policies proposed by Israel’s Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, including a proposed new death penalty law.
Ben-Gvir had begun a crusade against the inmates, issuing decisions such as the relocation of inmates, the elimination of prison bakeries and departments, the reduction of bathing facilities, and the imposition of unreasonable restrictions on visits by members of the Knesset.
Palestinian prisoners’ rights groups have predicted that on the first day of Ramadan, the inmates will publicly declare the beginning of a hunger strike.
Recently, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry stated that the Palestinian issue is of paramount importance in the Arab world, and that Egypt has made every effort to show its solidarity with the Palestinian people, including strongly condemning Israeli human rights violations.
