Egypt's president congratulates Israeli counterpart on inauguration

JERUSALEM

Egypt’s president congratulated his Israeli counterpart on Friday for his inauguration.

"I take this opportunity to congratulate Your Excellency as you embark on your new responsibilities, expressing my hope that your election will help to further strengthen the culture of peace," Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi wrote to Isaac Herzog.

It was published by the Jerusalem Post.

Al-Sisi also underlined that Egypt "believes in the importance of joint efforts to achieve a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian cause."

Herzog, 61, was sworn in on July 7 as Israel's eleventh president for a seven-year term renewable to succeed Reuven Rivlin.

In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in Washington following the Camp David Accords in 1978, ending a military conflict between the two nations and launching permanent and stable relations.

*Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara