Leaders of Arab countries endorsed Egypt’s Gaza reconstruction plan, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi announced, in a move to counter the controversial ideas of US President Donald Trump, although a number of crucial details remain to be ironed out.
The proposition was endorsed at an extraordinary Arab League summit held on Tuesday, with Jordanian King Abdullah, Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres among those present in an ornate domed hall at the new administrative capital on the outskirts of Cairo.
“This plan preserves the Palestinian people’s right to rebuild their homeland and ensures it remains on its land,” al-Sisi said in opening remarks, adding that Cairo would host a Gaza reconstruction conference next month.
Photo: Egyptian Presidency via AFP
He urged fellow leaders to contribute to a special fund that would be created for Gaza.
Parallel political and security tracks would be launched to support the rebuilding plan, he said.
Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, has said it welcomes the Arab-endorsed reconstruction plan.
Arab leaders have rejected Trump’s proposal to relocate all the residents of war-ravaged Gaza to make way for the US to build what he has called the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
The closing statement of the Arab summit condemned Israel’s decision this month to suspend humanitarian aid to Gaza and warned against the displacement of Palestinians and the occupation of more Palestinian territories, a move described as a “clear threat to the foundations of peace in the Middle East.”
It also stressed the importance of implementing the phased ceasefire agreement, including the withdrawal of Israel from the Gaza Strip and the Philadelphi corridor near the border with Egypt.
For a transitional period, the statement welcomed a suggestion to form a committee under the Palestinian government to administer Gaza, and a proposal from Egypt and Jordan to train Palestinian police in the coastal enclave.
It also called on the UN Security Council to deploy peacekeeping forces in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
However, while the representatives, including from Saudi Arabia, are seeking to project a unified front against Trump’s proposal to displace Palestinians, the initiative faces several major hurdles, some people briefed on the approximately 150-page document said.
Disagreements exist over the issue of Palestinian governance of Gaza, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive material.
Security of the enclave is another outstanding matter, they said, as well as the future of Hamas, which is designated a terrorist group by the US and a few other nations.
Al-Sisi said the effort to agree to a post-war Gaza plan should be a prelude to the creation of a Palestinian state and comprehensive peace between Israel and all Arab countries — and that this was possible with Trump in the White House.
The conflict has left the territory’s residents with a choice between “being annihilated or displaced,” he added.
“I am certain President Trump can do it given our sincere desire in ending tensions and enmities in our region,” said al-Sisi, who rejected Trump’s offer that Egypt host many of the 2 million Palestinians who would be driven out of Gaza.
A 90-page version of the Arab plan seen by Bloomberg News — dated this month and titled: “Gaza, Palestine: Early Recovery and Gaza Reconstruction and Development” — envisions multiple phases lasting between six months to five years at a total cost of US$53.2 billion.
Initially, 1.5 million Palestinians would be housed in temporary units spread out over seven sites across the war-ravaged territory as the monumental task of removing about 50 million tonnes of rubble gets underway, the document says.
The day-to-day affairs of Gaza would be run by “an independent committee consisting of technocrats and non-partisan” Palestinian figures “under the umbrella of the Palestinian government,” paving the way for the full return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza, according to the plan.
Al-Sisi confirmed this in his speech.
Egypt and Jordan would vet and train people to police Gaza with the possibility of deploying “an international defense/peacekeeping force with clear references” mandated by the UN Security Council, added the draft, without providing details.
One Arab official involved in drafting the plan said Hamas’ name was intentionally left out so as not to antagonize the group and secure its cooperation in implementation.
TURNAROUND: The Liberal Party had trailed the Conservatives by a wide margin, but that was before Trump threatened to make Canada the US’ 51st state Canada’s ruling Liberals, who a few weeks ago looked certain to lose an election this year, are mounting a major comeback amid the threat of US tariffs and are tied with their rival Conservatives, according to three new polls. An Ipsos survey released late on Tuesday showed that the left-leaning Liberals have 38 percent public support and the official opposition center-right Conservatives have 36 percent. The Liberals have overturned a 26-point deficit in six weeks, and run advertisements comparing the Conservative leader to Trump. The Conservative strategy had long been to attack unpopular Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but last month he
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
RSS