Mahmoud Abbas welcomes Egypt’s Gaza plan
The Palestinian president says the call to transfer the population of Gaza from their homeland is “categorically rejected”.
“We thank all Arab and European states who have taken the initiative and were quick to reject this irresponsible and inhumane call,” he said, speaking at an Arab League summit that aims to counter President Trump’s proposal for Gaza.
“We also reiterate our rejection of the Israeli practices to mandate a reality of occupation in the West Bank and Jerusalem with the purpose of undermining the two-state solution and the Palestinian cause,” Abbas added.
He said the Palestinian Authority (PA), which he heads, commends “the Arab-Egyptian plan for the reconstruction of Gaza in the presence of the Palestinians in their homeland”.
“We call on Trump to support the efforts of reconstruction on these bases, rather than any other basis,” Abbas added.
The president also said he was ready to hold presidential and parliamentary elections if circumstances allow, adding his Palestinian Authority was the only legitimate governing and military force in the Palestinian Territories.
Abbas announced the establishment of a new role – a vice president for both the State of Palestine and the Palestine Liberation Organization – and vowed to take the necessary legal steps to formalise the position. He also said he would issue a general amnesty for all those dismissed from Fatah, the group leading the PA, which has limited autonomy in the areas it administers in the occupied West Bank.
What did leaders say at Cairo summit?
Here are some of the statements made by the senior officials attending the Cairo summit:
- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has said his country’s plan would ensure Palestinians in Gaza “remain on their land”, saying the territory would be run by a committee of Palestinian technocrats.
- King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa has said Bahrain rejects “any attempts to establish illegal settlements or the forcible transfer of the Palestinian people”.
- UN chief Antonio Guterres has said a clear political framework that lays the foundation for Gaza’s recovery, reconstruction and lasting stability is needed, adding that the territory “must remain an integral part of an independent, democratic and sovereign Palestinian state, with no reduction in its territory or forced transfer of its population”.
- King Abdullah II has expressed Jordan’s “total rejection of the forcible transfer of Palestinians” from Gaza and its support for a reconstruction plan.
- Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas says the call to transfer the population of Gaza is “categorically rejected”, adding he is ready to hold presidential and parliamentary elections if circumstances allow.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas meets with Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, ahead of the emergency Arab summit organised by Egypt, in Cairo, Egypt on March 4
‘Views in Washington divided over Gaza’ amid Arab summit
William Lawrence, a former US diplomat, says the views in the US capital are split over the situation in Gaza.
“On the one hand, there are those who support the Trump proposals, which is pretty much a ‘whatever Israel wants’ policy”, he told Al Jazeera, speaking from Washington, DC.
“And then there are those who want a two-state solution and a dignified new homeland for part of the Palestinian population in Gaza along the lines of the Egyptian proposal,” Lawrence continued.
He also said that there is a third group who are undecided and follow the developments.
The former diplomat stressed some people in Washington see the summit in Cairo as a chance to build unity on Palestine.
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