Arab Countries Reject Mass Transfer Of Palestinians

Palestinian Refugees In Gaza (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Arab countries reject the idea of President of the United States (US) Donald Trump to mass relocate Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan. Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and the Palestinian Authority joined Jordan and Egypt in announcing their position on Trump's plans.

In a statement, the Arab state said that Trump's ideas threaten regional stability and risk expanding the Israeli-Hamas conflict.

Earlier last week, Trump expressed the desire to see the Gaza Strip cleaned as part of a postwar operation. Most of the enclaves were devastated after Israel's 15-month war in response to the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, which is now in a six-week ceasefire.

"I see the whole Gaza Strip now and it's a mess," Trump said.

He said he would urge Jordan and Egypt to accept more Gazans. "You talk about about about about one and a half million people. We're just cleaning everything up," Trump said.

Even the Trump transition team is said to be exploring the idea of temporarily moving some Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to Indonesia, when reconstruction efforts in Gaza began.

However, the spokesman for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rolliansyah Soemirat, said that the Indonesian government had never received any information regarding this matter.

Jordan and Egypt quickly criticized Trump's suggestion. Trump on Saturday (1/2/2025) called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi discussing the possibility of moving Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt when the Gaza Strip was being built.

Palestinians view Trump's desire as a trap. They are worried that if they leave Palestine later it will not be allowed back by Israel.

Previously, the United Nations (UN) firmly rejected US President Donald Trump's proposal to relocate Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip.