CAIRO, December 9. /TASS/. The Egyptian and Russian presidents, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Vladimir Putin, have discussed the situation in the Gaza Strip and the issues of delivery of humanitarian assistance to the enclave in a telephone conversation, and they also agreed on continued efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Palestinian sector, the Egyptian presidential spokesman Ahmed Fahmy said.

"The conversation focused on the situation in the region, particularly in the Gaza Strip, amid the tense political and humanitarian situation," he reported via Facebook (prohibited in Russia due to its ownership by Meta, which has been designated as extremist). The sides also discussed "Egypt’s efforts on delivery of most humanitarian assistance required for providing support to Gaza residents to the sector," the spokesman added, noting that the presidents stressed the necessity to protect civilians and prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave.

Al-Sisi and Putin agreed on "continuation of seriously reaching a ceasefire [in the sector], as well as making sure that the international community assumes responsibility for reaching this target," he said.

The sides noted "the importance of coordinated international efforts on reaching fair and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian problem on the basis of the decision to create two independent states, including the Palestinian one, and acknowledge it [the Palestinian state] in accordance with the principles of international legitimacy," the report said.