Bennett reportedly planning visit to Egypt to meet again with Sissi
Sharm el-Shiekh summit will be the second for two leaders in less than 6 months; report comes following decision to expand direct flights between Israel and Egypt
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is planning a trip to Egypt to meet with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, according to a report Saturday.
Bennett met with Sissi in Sharm el-Sheikh in September, the first meeting in a decade between the leaders of Israel and Egypt.
The Prime Minister’s Office did not comment on the report.
According to the Walla news site, the expected visit comes in the wake of the further warming of ties between the nations, after Israel announced on Wednesday the inauguration of a new flight route between Ben Gurion Airport and the Egyptian coastal resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Flights are expected to start as early as next month, during the week of the Passover holiday.
The agreement was hammered out in recent days after talks on security measures required for the route to operate were held between the Shin Bet, National Security Council, and unnamed “other parties,” along with the Egyptian government, the PMO said in a statement.
“This is another step in warming the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt,” Bennett said Wednesday. “Cooperation between the two countries is expanding into many areas, and it benefits both nations, as well as regional stability.”
He added, “Israel is opening up to more countries in the region, and the basis for this longstanding recognition is the peace between Israel and Egypt. Therefore, on both sides, we must invest in strengthening this connection, and that is what we’re doing.”
Israel and Egypt have bolstered their diplomatic ties in recent years. The two governments share security interests in the Gaza Strip — Egypt, like Israel, sees the enclave’s Hamas rulers as a serious threat — as well as in Sinai and the eastern Mediterranean.
