CAIRO, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Egypt is making "strong, tireless, and sincere" efforts to end the bloodshed in the Gaza Strip and revive a ceasefire, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said on Thursday.

The top Egyptian diplomat made the remarks during a joint press conference in Cairo with Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto.

Referring to Egypt's proposals for the release of a number of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, Abdelatty stressed Egypt seeks to reach a period of calm in Gaza, paving the way for returning to the January ceasefire agreement and entering negotiations over the second phase of the deal.

He also spoke of the Arab-Islamic plan for early recovery and reconstruction in Gaza without displacing the Palestinians from their homeland, underscoring that the plan has been welcomed by international partners, including the European Union.

Abdelatty affirmed Egypt's keenness to hold the international conference for Gaza reconstruction as soon as possible upon resuming the ceasefire.

He reiterated Egypt's "absolute rejection" of the displacement of Palestinians under any pretext, whether voluntary or forced, temporary or permanent, calling it "a red line."

"There is no way to achieve security or stability for Israel or the region without the Palestinian people obtaining their legitimate rights and establishing their independent state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital," the Egyptian minister said.

For his part, Szijjarto praised Egypt's "balanced policy" in handling regional challenges. "We highly appreciate Egypt's efforts toward achieving peace," Szijjarto told reporters.

He added that a Hungarian citizen remains in Hamas captivity in Gaza, expressing hope for his safe return.

Israel ended a two-month ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza on March 18 and resumed deadly air and ground assaults on the enclave, while seeking to implement a U.S.-backed plan to relocate Gazans to neighboring countries, including Egypt and Jordan. Both countries strongly reject the controversial relocation plan. Enditem

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