TASHKENT, October 25. /TASS/. Palestine appreciates the position of Egypt, which opposes the displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt's territory, Palestinian Ambassador to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan Jawad Awad told TASS.

"We appreciate Egypt's position against forcing the Palestinians into its desert territories where they will simply die out. The worst case will occur if Israel succeeds in cleansing the Gaza Strip. Then after a while the Israelis will repeat it in the West Bank, as they did in 1948. In fact, 80% of Gaza's residents are refugees from 1948," the diplomat said.

According to him, Israel aims to "intimidate the remnants of the Palestinian population, force them to flee to safety in Egypt and cleanse the Gaza Strip." "Over the past decades, the Palestinian people have learned to endure misfortunes and hardships. Therefore, it will continue to fight for the liberation of its occupied lands and seek the establishment of its state," the ambassador added.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told the CNN on October 17 that Cairo was ready to allow humanitarian aid for residents of the enclave through the Rafah crossing on the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. However, the country did not intend to accommodate refugees from Gaza on its territory. The Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported citing sources that Egypt proposed to establish camps for refugees in the Palestinian Rafah. According to the newspaper, the camps will be located 2 miles from the border with Egypt, and their activities will remain under Cairo’s control. Britain's The Financial Times also reported that Egypt was actively resisting pressure from the EU trying to persuade it to host Palestinian refugees.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the Gaza-based Palestinian radical group Hamas staged a surprise incursion into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, and has begun delivering air strikes on the enclave and certain parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are underway in the West Bank as well.