Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Sunday held a series of high-level meetings with top UN officials on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, focusing on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the refugee situation, and regional conflicts in Syria and Sudan.
The minister met with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Cindy McCain, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, and UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen.
In his meeting with UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi, Abdelatty urged the refugee agency to secure more international support to help Egypt bear the increasing burdens of hosting refugees and asylum seekers. He called on the UNHCR to intensify its efforts with donors to bridge funding gaps, in line with the principle of shared responsibilities. The two also discussed the crisis in Gaza and the latest developments in Sudan. For his part, Grandi praised Egypt’s active role in dealing with regional crises, describing it as an “essential and indispensable pillar” for regional security.
With WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain, talks centred on food security and the famine in Gaza. Abdelatty praised the WFP’s role and its calls for a ceasefire, and detailed Egypt’s efforts to deliver aid, stressing the need to pressure Israel to stop using “starvation as a weapon of war” and to allow the entry of aid waiting at the Rafah crossing. The minister also proposed that Egypt cooperate with the WFP to build a global centre for grain storage, supply, and trade on Egyptian soil.
During his meeting with UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, Abdelatty reiterated Egypt’s support for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). He said Egypt looks forward to OCHA continuing to monitor and document Israeli violations in both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He offered condolences for the 377 humanitarian workers killed in 2024, most of them in Gaza, and stressed the need for accountability for the “killing and destruction” against the Palestinian people and aid workers.
Shifting to another regional crisis, Abdelatty met with UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen. The foreign minister condemned what he called “continuous Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty,” including bombing that followed recent events in Suwayda, and affirmed Egypt’s rejection of Israel’s “exploitation of the current Syrian situation.” He reiterated Egypt’s support for a comprehensive political process that preserves Syria’s unity and territorial integrity and expressed Egypt’s readiness to cooperate with the UN envoy to reach a settlement.
