The Arab Summit Succeeds Under Egyptian Leadership in Countering the Displacement Plan and Presenting a Realistic Solution: Gaza Is Part of Palestine, and the Solution Is a Palestinian State…A Consensus-Based Palestinian Committee for Interim Governance

 March 05, 2025

The political editor wrote

The Arab Summit in Cairo combined political positioning with practical measures, albeit at a minimal level. It was evident that the advancement in the Arab stance was driven by Egyptian leadership in steering the summit and shaping its outcomes. This reaffirmed the concept of national security, at least to the extent of rejecting involvement in liquidating the Palestinian cause through the displacement plan proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump had threatened to cut aid to Egypt and Jordan if they refused to accept displaced Palestinians from Gaza. The summit’s final statement delivered a clear rejection of displacement, affirming that Gaza’s governance must remain Palestinian and that no solution for Gaza exists outside the framework of an independent Palestinian state.
In practical terms, the summit, through the Egyptian plan it adopted, took a significant step toward implementing measures to counter the occupation’s agenda and the threats posed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It approved the formation of a temporary committee of experts to manage Gaza with the agreement of both Fatah and Hamas, pending concrete steps toward national unity that would enable the Palestinian Authority to assume governance. Meanwhile, Egypt will oversee the restructuring of Gaza’s police force to ensure it remains neutral and nonpartisan.
The remaining challenge lies in how to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid, reconstruction materials, and heavy equipment without the approval of the Israeli army, which is unlikely to be granted. This is particularly pressing since the summit did not enforce the previous Arab-Islamic Summit decision to open the Rafah crossing without Israeli consent, recognising it as an exclusively Palestinian-Egyptian crossing. The upcoming Organisation of Islamic Cooperation foreign ministers’ meeting in Jeddah in the coming days may offer further clarity on this issue.
At the summit, Lebanese President General Joseph Aoun’s speech received notable praise domestically, with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri reportedly describing it as “remarkable”. In his address, the president delivered a comprehensive presentation on the national and humanitarian significance of the Palestinian cause, declaring it a just cause that requires strength. He emphasised that Palestine’s weakness weakens the Arabs, while its strength empowers them, asserting that there can be no peace without Palestine. Regarding Lebanon, Aoun affirmed that the country’s priority remains ending the occupation and halting aggression.