The ground operation after 10 days of Israeli bombardment of the coastal strip is aimed at hitting the Palestinian militant Hamas group, which rejected the truce and continued firing rockets into Israel after the Jewish State agreed to the ceasefire.
“Egypt condemns the Israeli escalation in Gaza and calls for self-control as its air strikes and ground operation only aggravate the situation and do not help preserve Israel’s security,” the foreign ministry said.
It said both Israel and Hamas must “immediately and unconditionally accept the Egyptian (ceasefire) proposal as it offers protection to the Palestinian people. It is the only way to halt the aggression and preserve the blood of our brotherly Palestinian people.”
Earlier Thursday, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri criticised Hamas, saying it could have saved dozens of lives had it accepted Cairo’s ceasefire proposal presented earlier this week.
Hamas, the Islamist rulers of Gaza, had rejected the ceasefire intended to start on Tuesday and continued firing rockets at Israeli cities.
Meanwhile, Egyptian envoy to the West Bank town of Ramallah, Wael Nasr Eldine Attiya, urged Egyptians in Gaza to be “extra cautious and avoid places that could be targeted” by Israeli forces.
He also urged Egyptians “willing to leave Gaza to head to Rafah crossing… so they can enter Egypt,” the official news agency MENA quoted him as saying.