CAIRO, June 17 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Tuesday called for halting the ongoing military escalation between Israel and Iran during two separate phone conversations with U.S. Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
During the phone calls, Abdelatty stressed the necessity of working toward de-escalation in the region and resorting to diplomatic and political solutions that contribute to containing the escalating situation and averting the risk of a widespread conflagration in the Middle East, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
He underscored the imperative of achieving an immediate ceasefire and returning to the path of negotiations as the only means to reach a sustainable agreement regarding the Iranian nuclear program.
Abdelatty further affirmed the need to prevent the expansion of the conflict and the region's descent into comprehensive chaos, which would inflict harm on all parties.
The ongoing Israeli-Iranian conflict began on June 13, when Israel launched large-scale airstrikes against Iranian nuclear and military sites, killing several senior Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists. In response, Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Israeli territory. The five-day aerial conflict has left at least 244 people dead in Iran and 24 in Israel. ■
