Egypt to respond idea of deploying international troops in Gaza: FM

Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit on Thursday said that the idea of deploying international troops in the Gaza Strip was worth of discussion.Commenting on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s proposal on deploying international troops in Gaza, Abul Gheit told reporters that Egypt will respond to the idea.He, meanwhile, reiterated that the dispatching of international peacekeepers to Gaza also needed the consent of the Palestinian and Israeli sides.

The five-day infighting between main rival Fatah and Hamas movements has claimed at least 79 Palestinian lives.

Arab League (AL) Secretary General Amr Moussa on Thursday called for an immediate halt of the infighting of the Palestinian warring factions, warning of the destructive impact of their continued fighting on the Palestinian cause.

Moussa also called on the Palestinian factions to cooperate with the mediating efforts of the Egyptian security group in Gaza and reach a reconciliation agreement.

In its Thursday meeting, the AL council decided to hold an emergency meeting at a ministerial level on Friday to end the deteriorating situation in the Palestinian lands and the developments in Lebanon.