CAIRO:Arab nations have strongly opposed former U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and Jordan, forming a rare united front against the controversial plan.
Even Washington’s closest regional allies have rejected the idea, with countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar joining forces to block it.
Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the Arab League, reaffirmed this stance on Wednesday, emphasizing that any displacement of Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank is unacceptable. He warned that the Arab world has resisted such plans for a century and will not concede now.
Speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, he declared, “We, as Arabs, will not surrender to this idea in any way.”
Over the past two weeks, Trump has continued to push for his proposal, advocating for the removal of Gaza’s 2.4 million residents and suggesting U.S. control over the territory. He even implied that aid to Egypt and Jordan could be withheld if they refused to comply.
However, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II reaffirmed their unified stance on Wednesday, stressing the urgent need for Gaza’s reconstruction “without forcing Palestinians from their land.”
Even Saudi Arabia, which was moving toward normalizing relations with Israel before the Gaza conflict erupted, has refused to support the plan.
Anna Jacobs, a senior analyst at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, explained, “Arab nations cannot afford to be seen aligning with the U.S. and Israel in supporting a policy that would result in the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.”
