Egypt State Information Service (SIS) has denied media reports claiming that it was “prepared to temporarily relocate half a million Gazan residents to a designated city in North Sinai as part of a Gaza Strip reconstruction plan.”
In a statement, the SIS asserted that these claims were false and fundamentally contradict Egypt’s position, which was declared at the onset of the war on Gaza in October 2023. Egypt has consistently rejected any attempt to displace Palestinians, whether forcibly or voluntarily, to any location outside of Gaza, particularly to Egypt. The SIS stated that such actions would constitute a negation of the Palestinian cause and pose a significant threat to Egypt’s national security.
The SIS emphasized that Egypt’s stance underpins the reconstruction plan presented at the recent Cairo Arab Emergency Summit. This plan, unanimously approved by the summit, aims to rebuild Gaza without displacing any Palestinians.
US President Donald Trump, who in February proposed relocating approximately two million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to neighbouring Middle Eastern countries. Trump suggested this would allow the United States to develop the territory into a “Riviera of the Middle East.” His plans was firmly rejected by Egypt and Jordan.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi responded to Trump’s initial suggestion by saying: “In Egypt, we have warned since the beginning of the crisis that what was happening was an attempt to render the Gaza Strip uninhabitable, paving the way for the displacement of the Palestinians. I state it unequivocally: The displacement of the Palestinian people from their place is an injustice. We cannot condone or be a part of the unjust displacement of Palestinians.”
Egypt has developed a plan, with Arab support, to rebuild Gaza without displacing its Palestinian population. The plan involves establishing “secure areas” within Gaza where Palestinians can reside while Egyptian and international construction firms remove debris and rehabilitate the strip’s infrastructure.
