Arab Nations Seek Rebuilding Gaza In 5 Years

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

CAIRO/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Arab countries will unveil a plan to reconstruct Gaza within three to five years without displacing the Palestinian population and without Hamas control over the territory, sources said Sunday.

The reported plan is an alternative to U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s proposal for an American takeover of the territory and turning Gaza into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”

Trump’s Gaza plan would also involve the expulsion of at least some 1.8 million displaced Palestinians to nearby nations.

Yet the latest Arab initiative to be unveiled in Cairo, Egypt, on February 27, foresees a future of Palestinians within a reconstructed Gaza Strip.

Sources familiar with the discussions said the plan, developed by Palestinians, was given to Egypt and is due to be presented to the leaders of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.

The hundreds of millions of dollars necessary to rebuild Gaza following the Israel-Hamas war will come from Gulf countries.

The work will be carried out by Egyptian companies, representing a significant source of income for Egypt, which is vehemently opposed to any migration of Palestinians out of Gaza. Sources said that the workforce will consist mainly of local Palestinians.

MUCH DESTROYED

Reconstruction would take three to five years because 65 percent of the property in Gaza has been destroyed, Israeli and Arab sources said.

Ahead of the February 27 meeting, Saudi Arabia hosts the leaders of several Arab nations on February 20 to discuss Trump’s Gaza vision, Worthy News reported earlier.

European diplomats admit the issue of providing security guarantees to Israel in exchange for leaving Gaza remains unresolved.

No Arab country wants to offer troops in the absence of Israel, which would provide “a clear political horizon to a Palestinian state,” observers said.

Supporters of the plan hope it will help end the Israel-Hamas war, which broke out after Hamas fighters attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and abducting about 250 others.

More than 48,000 Palestinians were killed in Gaza, according to local Hamas-ruled authorities. Those figures are difficult to verify, but Israel says about half of those killed are Hamas fighters.

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