Despite flak, Israel begins preps for Gaza ‘exodus’

Israel said on Thursday it has begun preparations for the departure of large numbers of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in line with President Donald Trump’s plan for the territory. Officials meanwhile said Egypt has launched an diplomatic blitz behind the scenes to try and head off the plan.

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The Palestinians and much of the international community have rejected Trump’s proposal, fearing Israel will never allow the refugees to return and that it would destabilise the region. Egypt has warned that such a plan could undermine its peace treaty with Israel, a cornerstone of stability and American influence in the Middle East for decades.

Saudi Arabia, another key US ally, has also rejected any mass transfer of Palestinians and says it will not normalize relations with Israel — a key goal of the Trump administration — without the creation of a Palestinian state that includes Gaza.

Palestinians say they don’t want to leave. The New York-based Human Rights Watch and other groups say Trump’s proposal, if implemented, would amount to “ethnic cleansing,” the forcible relocation of the civilian population of an ethnic group from a geographic area.

Israeli leaders have welcomed Trump’s proposal and portrayed the possible mass departure of Palestinians from the war-ravaged territory as voluntary.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said he has ordered the military to make preparations to facilitate the emigration of large numbers of Palestinians from Gaza through land crossings as well as “special arrangements for exit by sea and air.” There were no immediate signs of such preparations on the ground.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has not publicly responded to Trump’s stunning proposal that most of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million Palestinians be relocated and the United States take charge of rebuilding the territory.

But Egyptian officials, speaking Wednesday on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door talks, said Cairo has made clear to the Trump administration and Israel that it will resist any such proposal.