Refusal by Egypt and Jordan to Trump’s Calls to Host Displaced Palestinians from Gaza /  Israeli Airstrikes in the South Raise Questions About the Seriousness of Withdrawal by February 18 Deadline

 January 30, 2025

The political editor wrote

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi publicly declared Egypt’s categorical refusal to participate in the displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and Jordan. Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi had announced a similar Jordanian stance the day before yesterday. Yesterday, President El-Sisi stated, “The constants of Egypt’s historical position on the Palestinian issue cannot be compromised in any way, and the fundamental principles underlying Egypt’s stance are firm and unwavering”. He added that leniency or permission for any plan to displace Palestinians is out of the question, as it poses a direct threat to Egypt’s national security.

El-Sisi also stated, “Egypt is determined to work with U.S.’s President Donald Trump to achieve the desired peace based on the two-state solution”, emphasising that this is the only path to a just and lasting resolution of the Palestinian issue. The Egyptian president also stressed the Egyptian people’s rejection of any attempt to impose a displacement scenario, saying, “If I were to ask the Egyptian people for this, they would all take to the streets and tell me not to participate in the injustice and displacement of the Palestinian people”.

On the Gaza and Lebanon fronts, there is evident Israeli confusion, reflecting the bitterness felt by the entity’s leaders over admitting the war’s end with results that declare failure to achieve their objectives. This is evident in attempts to manufacture problems hindering the implementation of the Gaza agreement and in using flimsy excuses to evade commitments under the Lebanon agreement. Yesterday, the resistance in Gaza announced the release of three hostages tomorrow, thwarting the occupation’s attempt to fabricate a crisis by conditioning the continuation of the agreement on the release of the hostage Arbel Yehuda. Today’s exchange, outside the agreed-upon schedule, will see the entity release 120 prisoners in exchange for 3 prisoners, including Yehuda. Meanwhile, in Lebanon, new Israeli airstrikes using drones targeted road intersections, valleys, and villages in southern Lebanon, raising questions about the entity’s seriousness in committing to a full withdrawal by the end of the deadline extended by the U.S. side until February 18. Observers of Israeli behaviour, especially if the anticipated U.S. withdrawal from Syria occurs, believe the occupation army seeks to revive the concept of the battles between wars similar to its previously waged battles in Syria against the resistance, including Lebanon and Syria. This would allow the entity to continue intermittent attrition warfare on the Lebanese front and expand its incursions on the Syrian front, particularly given its confidence in U.S. support.

On the government front, there is stagnation amid conflicting interpretations of the terms and demands, alongside expanding internal and external disputes over the government formation. This is accompanied by internal and external movements translating into advice for the designated Prime Minister, Nawaf Salam, each pushing in a different direction. Sources following the matter reported that even the U.S. is sending mixed signals. The sources also conveyed the President of the Republic’s desire to expedite the government formation, with talk of a Saudi deadline until the end of the week for the government to be formed.