Egypt eyed as mediator as Israel plans weeks of war with Iran
Shafaq News- Middle East
Egypt may emerge as a mediator between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other to halt the ongoing war, Israeli sources said Sunday, as Israel signaled plans to continue its military campaign for several more weeks.
According to Kan (Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation), a diplomatic source said Egypt could play an effective mediation role given Washington’s trust in Cairo and the recent diplomatic contacts between Cairo and Tehran.
The report noted that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi recently spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, urging him to halt Iranian attacks on Gulf states and give diplomacy a chance.
Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty traveled to Doha on Sunday at the start of a Gulf tour aimed at coordinating responses to the rapidly evolving regional crisis.
Separately, CNN reported that the Israeli army plans to continue its military campaign against Iran for at least three more weeks, with officials saying the military has thousands of targets prepared in coordination with the United States.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also suggested that the war’s outcome could partly depend on internal developments inside Iran, calling on Iranians to rise against the government. Analysis published by Ynet indicated that Israel’s strategy extends beyond military strikes to include efforts to increase internal pressure within Iran, which Israeli officials believe could influence the timeline and outcome of the conflict.
The war began on Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran that killed several senior Iranian figures, including the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, and caused significant damage to military and infrastructure targets. Iran later retaliated with missile strikes against Israel and US interests across the region.
