Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani will meet Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, foreign minister Israel Katz and Palestinian Authority premier Mohammed Mustafa on his visit to the region on Monday to boost diplomatic efforts on an immediate truce in the Gaza war and the freeing of hostages still held there.
At the talks in Israel and in the occupied West Bank, Tajani will reiterate Italy's commitment to peace, calling for an immediate ceasefire and the release of hostages following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar last week, said a foreign ministry statement.
Tajani will call on Israel to immediately facilitate an increased flow of food and medical goods to Gaza through the border crossings. He will also emphasize Italian support for the 'Two Peoples - Two States' solution to the long-running conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, which has always been Italy's chief goal in the Middle East region.
The minister will express Italy's grave concern about the effect on civilians of Israel's devastating war against Islamist group Hamas in Gaza which began after the Hamas-led rampage on 7 October last year in which 1,200 people were killed at 250 taken hostage according to Israeli tallies, said the statement.
Tajani will outline the Middle East humanitarian conference that will open the G7 ministerial meeting on development in Pescara on Tuesday and Wednesday. The conference's aim is to propel the humanitarian rehabilitation of Gaza and Lebanon, the statement said.
Precisely for this reason, Tajani will reaffirm during his visit "the need to avoid escalation in Lebanon, also to ensure the safety and security of the Unifil (UN peacekeeping) contingents in the country," the statement underlined.
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