Egypt’s answer to Trump’s “Gaza Riviera” is meant to push Hamas to the sidelines

According to a document seen by Reuters, Egypt’s proposal for Gaza, which was drafted in response to US President Donald Trump’s vision of a Middle East Riviera, would marginalize Hamas and substitute it with temporary organizations governed by Arab, Muslim, and Western nations.

Whether the Egyptian vision for Gaza will be executed before or after a final peace agreement to end the conflict sparked by the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks is not made clear in the proposal, which is scheduled to be presented at an Arab League conference on Tuesday.
Trump’s plan, which called for demolishing Gaza’s Palestinian residents, infuriated Palestinians and Arab countries and seemed to revert to US Middle East policy, which has historically been centered on a two-state solution.

The biggest unresolved issue in talks over the future of the enclave is who will govern Gaza after the battle. To date, Hamas has opposed any suggestion that foreign governments would try to force on Palestinians.

Cairo’s proposal doesn’t address important questions like who will pay for Gaza’s rehabilitation, how the government would operate in Gaza, or how an armed force as strong as Hamas would be defeated.

Under the Egyptian plan, a Governance Assistance Mission would replace the Hamas-run government in Gaza for an unspecified interim period and would be responsible for humanitarian aid and for kick-starting reconstruction of the enclave, which has been devastated by the war.
“There will be no major international funding for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Gaza if Hamas remains the dominant and armed political element on the ground controlling local governance,” a preamble outlining the draft Egyptian plan’s objectives said.

Details of Egypt’s proposed framework for Gaza’s future have not been previously reported.
Egypt, Jordan and Gulf Arab states have for almost a month been scrambling to formulate a diplomatic offensive to counter Trump’s plan. A number of ideas have been proposed, with Egypt’s considered the frontrunner.
Reuters was unable to determine whether Arab leaders would support the plan presented by Egypt.

The plan does not specify who would run the governance mission. It said it would, “draw on the expertise of Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere to help Gaza recover as quickly as possible.”

The draft proposal was shared with Reuters by an official involved in Gaza negotiations who wished to remain anonymous because the draft has not yet been made public.
The plan firmly rejects the US proposal for mass displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, which Arab states such as Egypt and Jordan see as a security threat.
“President Trump has been clear that Hamas cannot continue to govern Gaza,” White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said when asked about Egypt’s Gaza plan and whether the US would support it.

“While the President stands by his bold vision for a post-war Gaza, he welcomes input from our Arab partners in the region. It’s clear his proposals have driven the region to come to the table rather than allow this issue to devolve into further crisis,” Hughes said.

STABILISATION FORCE
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters the group knows of no such proposal by Egypt.
“The day after in Gaza must only be decided by the Palestinians,” he said. “Hamas rejects any attempt to impose projects or any form of non-Palestinian administration, or the presence of any foreign forces on the land of the Gaza Strip.”

The Egyptian draft does not mention future elections.
Egypt’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did the office of Israel’s prime minister, whose support for any plan is seen as vital to secure a commitment that any future reconstruction will not be destroyed again.

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has ruled the coastal enclave since 2007. It launched the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and started the Gaza war.
A January 19 ceasefire brought a temporary end to the fighting, but the first phase of the deal expired on Saturday with no sign of an agreement to move to the second phase.
The Egyptian draft does not tackle the issue of what actions could be taken if Hamas refuses to disarm or step aside from politics.

The proposal envisions an International Stabilization Force drawn primarily from Arab states that would take over the role of providing security from the militant group, with the eventual establishment of a new local police force.

Both security and governance bodies would be “arranged, guided, and supervised” by a steering board. The draft said the board would comprise key Arab countries, members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the United States, Britain, the European Union and its member states, and others.

The plan does not detail a central governing role for the Palestinian Authority (PA), which opinion polls show has little support among Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

A Palestinian official told Reuters that, like the West Bank, Gaza falls under the PA’s jurisdiction—and it must be run by Palestinians.
“We agreed with the Egyptians on a committee made of Palestinian experts that will help the Palestinian Authority in running the Gaza Strip for six months. The committee is made of Palestinian experts and coordinates with the PA and doesn’t answer to non-Palestinian bodies,” said the official, who asked not to be named for sensitivity.

RECONSTRUCTION BILL
Since Hamas drove the Palestinian Authority out of Gaza after a brief civil war in 2007, it has crushed all opposition there. Supported by Iran, it built an extensive security apparatus and military organization based around a vast network of tunnels—much of which Israel says it has now destroyed.

The plan does not say who would pay to rebuild Gaza, a bill estimated by the UN at more than $53 billion. Two sources have told Reuters that Gulf and Arab states would need to commit at least $20 billion in the initial phase of reconstruction.

Egypt’s proposal envisions that states on the steering board could establish a fund to support the interim governing body and arrange donor conferences to seek contributions for a longer-term reconstruction and development plan for Gaza.
The plan does not contain any specific financial pledges.

Oil- and gas-producing Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates could be vital sources of funding from the region.
The United Arab Emirates, for instance, sees Hamas and other militant groups as an existential threat and is unlikely to offer any funding until Hamas has been sidelined.
The foreign ministries in Qatar and the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s international media office did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Egypt’s plan or to questions about their willingness to commit funds to rebuild Gaza.

The draft plan also calls on the steering board to coordinate with a Civil Society Advisory Board, consisting of academics, NGO leaders, and other notable figures.