Egypt warns against opening new war front in Lebanon, calls for Gaza cease-fire

By Ibrahim Khazen

CAIRO (AA) - Egypt warned Sunday of the risks of opening a new war front in Lebanon and called for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

The warning followed the death of 12 people in a missile attack in the Druze town of Majdal Shams in Israel-occupied Golan Heights.

While Israel has blamed Hezbollah for Saturday’s attack, the Lebanese group denied any responsibility.

In a statement, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said opening a new war front in Lebanon “could drag the region into an all-out regional war.”

It underlined the importance of “supporting Lebanon, its people, and its institutions, and sparing the country the horrors of war.”

The statement called on influential powers “to intervene immediately to spare the peoples of the region further disastrous consequences of the expansion of the conflict, which may pose a threat to international peace and security."

It called for reaching “an immediate and comprehensive cease-fire to end the humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip as soon as possible.”

Fears have grown about a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah amid an exchange of cross-border attacks between the two sides. The escalation comes against the backdrop of a deadly Israeli onslaught on Gaza, which has killed more than 39,300 victims since October, following an attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala in Istanbul