Leaders of the Arab League’s extraordinary conference in Cairo have approved Egypt’s plan for the reconstruction of the war-torn Gaza Strip.
Speaking at the summit deadline session, Egyptian President Abdel Fatta El-Sisi said he has presented a five-year plan to rebuild Gaza, which will rebuild $53 billion (50.5 billion euros) and allow Palestinians to “remain on the land,” according to draft documents.
“There will be no real peace without establishing a Palestinian state,” he said earlier, opening the summit. “Peace is not forced, and cannot be forced.”
However, Israel demanded disarmament in Hamas, in order for the ceasefire to take to the next stage. Muslim groups call it “red line.”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that debate and support in Cairo “we were unable to deal with the reality of the situation,” following Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Washington welcomes input, but Hamas says he can’t maintain power in Gaza
Egyptian President Abdel Fatta Elsi said in a post-summit post he welcomed proposals and ideas from the international community and he looked forward to working with US President Donald Trump.
The White House welcomed input from Arab countries, but Hamas argued that it could not maintain power in Gaza, said Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the US National Security Council.
“It was clear that President Trump would not be able to continue governing Gaza,” Hughes said.
What you know so far about Egypt’s reconstruction plan
According to a 112-page draft document seen by the DPA and Reuters press, the first six months of recovery phase will focus on removing the tiled rub and installing temporary housing at a cost of around $3 billion.
In a proper first phase, the plan calls for the construction of 200,000 residential units in Gaza over the next two years. In the second phase, we will see housing units of 200,000 people.
By 2030, the plan foresees new homes for hundreds of thousands of people and housing airports, industrial zones, hotels and parks.
President Sisi said the “independent” Palestinian body will administer Gaza under a reconstruction plan, while Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said his Palestinian authority will be prepared to play a role.
EU Back Egypt’s proposal
Sisi urged the international community to support Egypt’s reconstruction plan and received support from both the United Nations and the European Union.
Speaking at the Cairo Summit, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he “strongly supported” the Arab-led initiative, adding that the United Nations is “ready to fully cooperate with this effort.”
EU Council President Antonio Costa also welcomed the plan, saying it would “give hope to millions of Palestinians overseas on the West Bank,” which would end the horrific suffering we all witnessed in the past year and a half.
Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa also expressed his support for the opening session:
Syrian interim president Ahmed al-Shara also attended his first meeting since he kicked out longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad nearly three months ago. Shara calls Trump’s proposal “a very big crime that never happens.”
Reaction to the Egyptian program within Gaza
Reconstruction funds will require a large amount of buy-in from oil-rich Gulf countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.
Neither country supports Hamas, the Muslim group that currently controls the strip.
Nevertheless, Hamas still welcomed Egypt’s proposal, saying in a statement:
The full extent of damage is known only if inspectors are fully accessible to the territory, but the United Nations estimated that nearly 70% of all structures in Gaza had been damaged or destroyed. This includes over 245,000 homes.
Another UN estimate states that the war was littered with over 50 million tons of bleached tiles. It is about 12 times the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza.
What prompted the Arab Emergency Summit?
The plan, discussed at Tuesday’s summit, rebutted President Donald Trump’s controversial pledge to own Gaza and a pledge to redevelop it after “resettling” about two million Palestinians in Arab countries.
Trump has uploaded an AI-generated video showing that war-torn Gaza has become the “Middle Eastern Riviera” that was praised as “foresightful and innovative” by Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu and has become the “Middle Eastern Riviera.”
Nevertheless, Egyptian President Sisi argued that peace could still be achieved on what President Trump called the Palestine issue.
“I am confident that Trump can do that in our true desire to put an end to the tensions and hostility of our region,” he said.
Edited by: Alex Berry
