Egypt’s Sissi warns against further regional escalation in meeting with top US general

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi warns against further regional escalation on Sunday in a meeting with the highest-ranking general in the United States, after cross-border hostilities between Israel and Lebanon intensified.

Sissi “warned of the dangers of a new front opening in Lebanon and stressed the necessity of preserving Lebanon’s stability and sovereignty,” according to a statement from the president’s office.

His meeting in Egypt with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Charles “CQ” Brown, comes hours after Israel launched airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon to thwart a major attack on central and northern Israel, and the Iran-backed group fired 230 projectiles at northern Israel.

The visit comes amid planned talks in Cairo, to be attended by CIA chief William Burns, aimed at a truce in the Gaza Strip that has seemed increasingly unlikely.

Sissi also called for a “decisive stance from the international community” and a stronger response “to joint Egyptian-American-Qatari efforts” for a ceasefire and hostage-release deal, which would enable a “path to calm and stability in the region,” his office says.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.