Arab states endorse Egypt's plan for post-war rebuilding and governance in Gaza

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Arab leaders meeting in Egypt on Tuesday endorsed a plan for Gaza that envisions technocratic control of the war-battered territory without Hamas members and a $53 billion reconstruction plan, according to a resolution adopted at the one-day summit.

The emergency summit of the Arab League's 22 member states was held to counter US President Donald Trump’s controversial vision for postwar Gaza and present a united front against displacement, giving the international community a credible alternative.

The eight-page resolution seen by The National said the summit "endorses the plan presented by the Arab Republic of Egypt in full co-ordination with the state of Palestine and Arab nations and based on studies carried out by the World Bank and the UN Development Fund concerning the early recovery and reconstruction of Gaza as a comprehensive Arab plan and offer all kinds of financial and material support for its implementation".

Egypt's plan estimates rebuilding will take three to five years and, contrary to Mr Trump's vision, Gaza's 2.3 million Palestinians will stay in the coastal enclave while the work is under way, instead of being forced to resettle in Egypt and Jordan.

The American president's plan also includes a US "takeover" of Gaza and developing it into a resort.

"The attempt to crush the aspiration of creating a Palestinian state or take away the land of the Palestinians will only result in more conflict and instability," said the resolution.

Addressing the summit's opening session, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said: “Egypt calls for the adoption of this plan and the mobilisation of regional and international support for it.” He said a peace process should be launched and pursued in parallel with the reconstruction plan until a “just and comprehensive” settlement of the decades-old Palestinian-Israeli conflict is reached.

“Peace will never come through the use of force … the creation of a Palestinian state is a must,” said Mr El Sisi, who accused Israel of using force to empty Gaza of its inhabitants. "It's like giving the people of Gaza the choice between certain destruction and eviction."

Under the plan, nearly half of Gaza's residents will be moved to seven safe zones in the territory while work gets under way, according to an executive summary of the plan seen by The National, with the main points mentioned by Mr El Sisi. The plan's estimated cost is $53 billion, about the same as a UN forecast.

"We endorse the Egyptian-Arab-Palestinian Gaza reconstruction plan with our people continuing to live on their land, and we support its endorsement by this summit and enlisting international support for it," Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the summit.

The plan also has political and security sections outlining how Gaza will be governed after the war. The political part envisages a committee of 20 independent technocrats to run the territory for six months, meaning Hamas will have to relinquish its authority, according to sources.

They said Palestinian factions have approved the nominated technocrats, despite them not being affiliated with any group. Mr Abbas must issue a decree to establish the new agency, which will be backed by local tribal chiefs and mayors.

“We have the names of the 20 members and we are waiting for President Abbas to give it his OK,” said one of the sources. “They are all without [direct] affiliation to any Palestinian faction, including Hamas.”

Under the plan, the committee would operate under the Palestinian Authority's umbrella and, in theory, pave the way for its return to governing Gaza, which it lost to Hamas in a brief civil war in 2007.

"It's important that the Palestinian Authority continues its efforts to take further steps to reform its institutions and agencies," said the summit's communique, making a thinly veiled reference to charges of inefficiency and corruption within the West Bank-based Palestinian government.

Commenting on the plan, Bassam Khalaf, member of the political leadership of Hamas in Lebanon, said his group has agreed “to step down from ruling Gaza, but it is necessary to clarify the proposal for the committee”. Hamas is “not committed to continue ruling Gaza”, he added.

“The nature of this mission must be clear and will reject any presence of the US to oversee it,” Mr Khalaf said.

The UAE's delegation to the summit was led by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court.

The future governance of the territory remains a central issue in continuing mediation efforts as Gaza's warring parties and negotiators seek a long-term solution that could transform the fragile ceasefire into a broader peace process.

The plan reviewed by the summit says that dealing with the weapons in the hands of Hamas and other groups is “possible” if the reasons behind acquiring them are removed “through a credible peace process that restores [Palestinian] rights”.

The Egyptian plan allows for the continued use of Gaza's existing police force and the provision of additional training by both Egypt and Jordan, according to an executive summary seen by The National.

It also envisages the posting of Arab and UN forces to monitor land crossings between Gaza and both Egypt and Israel, and a new port on the Mediterranean that would be built to receive construction material and equipment. The force would be mandated by a UN Security Council resolution, it said.

Most of Gaza's buildings and infrastructure have been destroyed in the 15-month war, during which about 48,400 Palestinians have been killed and more than twice that number injured, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The vast majority of Gaza's residents have been displaced.

The war started after a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed about 1,200 people on the deadliest day in Israel since its creation in 1948. The attackers also took about 240 people hostage. Hamas is believed to be still holding about 60 captives.

The emergency Arab summit was held as the ceasefire that began on January 19 appears at serious risk of unravelling after Hamas rejected an Israeli offer to extend it until mid-April rather than negotiate the withdrawal of its troops and a permanent end to the war.

Under the truce agreement mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the US, Israel and Hamas were due to start talks early last month on ending the war and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. However, the talks never started and the ceasefire expired last week after Hamas had released 33 hostages in exchange for the freedom of about 2,000 Palestinians detainees.

“The resistance has prepared itself for war, even if this option is unlikely," Mr Khalaf said