Abbas, foreign heads of state to attend 'peace summit' in Cairo Saturday

An international meeting will be held in Cairo on Saturday to discuss Israel's ongoing war with Hamas in Gaza. The war, which threatens to expand, and has already involved exchanges of fire with Lebanon and the interception yesterday of missiles from Iranian-backed Houthi forces in Yemen, is a cause of concern for the entire Middle East and international community. 

Egypt, in particular, plays a vital role in the conflict, as it is the only country beside Israel which has a border with Gaza, and, following Israel's imposition of a near-total siege on the territory, is the only port of entry through which goods or people are able to move in and out of the Strip. The Rafah crossing, where such movement would take place, has been closed since an Israeli air strike on the area in the early days of the war. 

Here's who is planning to attend.

Throughout Friday, a number of international figures announced their intention to participate in the meeting, sometimes referred to as a 'peace summit.' As of Friday afternoon Israel time, these were the announced participants:

President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas will attend, his office announced.

Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa will attend, according to Bahrain's state news agency.

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides will attend, a source from the Cypriot Presidency said.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will be there, government sources told Reuters.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will attend the peace summit.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna will attend a meeting on the Palestinian-Israeli issue in Egypt on Saturday, a French diplomatic source said.

Colonna had already traveled to Cairo, Beirut, and Israel last week as Paris looks to reduce the risk of an escalation across the region.

Diplomatic sources said there was still a possibility that President Emmanuel Macron would attend the meeting.