Jerusalem
CNN
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US President Donald Trump’s proposal to “cleanse” the Gaza Strip by moving more than a million Palestinians to neighboring countries has drawn sharp criticism, with opponents calling it a warning of ethnic cleansing and regional chaos. is
Trump said on Saturday that he would like Jordan and Egypt to take in Gazans internally displaced by Israel’s devastating war. “You’re talking about a million and a half people, and we’re just cleaning this whole thing up,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One.
The potential transfer “could be temporary” or “could be long-term,” he said. Both countries immediately rejected the idea.
But, if adopted, the proposal would mark a sharp break with the Biden administration’s position that Gaza should not be settled and could signal a shift from a long-standing U.S. position that Gaza should be a future Palestinian state. should be part of It would also align the Trump administration with Israel’s most extreme far-right politicians, who advocate moving Palestinians out of the territory for Jewish settlement.
Trump’s proposal has been embraced by hard-line Israeli politicians, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smutrich – who has sparked controversy by claiming that “there is no such thing as a Palestinian people” – and national security officials. Former minister Atmar Bin Guer, who was once convicted of supporting Inciting terrorism and anti-Arab racism.
Palestinian politicians called it a plan to ethnically cleanse Gazans from their land.
And in the United States, even Senator Lindsey Graham — one of the most ardent supporters of Israel in Congress — told CNN in an interview. that they do not believe the idea is “overly practical.”
“I don’t know what he’s talking about,” Graham said, referring to Trump.
Beyond ethical and legal concerns, the influx of refugees to neighboring Arab countries could destabilize them and threaten their existence, experts have warned. They say agreeing to Trump’s proposal would inflame widespread public anger — an intolerable risk for these governments.
Timothy Kaldas, deputy director of the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy in Washington, DC, said that if they … accept Palestinian participation and hosting in ethnic cleansing, it would undoubtedly be infuriating and truly destabilizing for both countries. Will be. CNN.
Hassan al-Hassan, senior fellow for Middle East policy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Bahrain, said both the Egyptian and Jordanian governments “will face domestic opposition if their people are seen as satisfied with another Palestinian Nakba.” Referring to 1948, when some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were forcibly expelled. From their homes in historic Palestine during the creation of Israel.
Israel has barred them and their descendants from returning, leaving millions of refugees without the prospect of citizenship or permanent settlement in neighboring countries.
“Given that Gaza’s Palestinians are unlikely to leave voluntarily, forced migration to Egypt or Jordan could pose a variety of risks for both countries,” Al-Ahsan said.
For Jordan, already home to millions of Palestinians, a changing demographic “would threaten the Hashemite monarchy’s grip on power,” he said, adding that financially, “neither Egypt nor Jordan can afford millions of additional refugees.” can afford to host.”
Egypt and Jordan are two of America’s closest allies in the Middle East, and major recipients of American aid that have aligned their regional policies with American interests for decades. They were the first Arab countries to sign peace treaties with Israel and maintain cordial relations with Israel, including security coordination, despite public discontent.
Over time, the influence of Jordan and Egypt in Washington, D.C., has been eroded by Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, said conflict expert Jeanne Connemont, co-host of the European Leadership Network, a think tank, and the Disorder podcast. There is a shadow. and the United Arab Emirates. He added that seeing how far those countries would go would “send a clear message to Washington that mass migration will not end the conflict.”
“It is important for regional countries to emphasize that the refugee issue is a driver of the current conflict and that making more Palestinians refugees will not solve it. It goes to the heart of the conflict,” said Connemont.
On Sunday, both Egypt and Jordan reiterated their rejection of Palestinian deportation or resettlement.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said at a news conference in Amman on Sunday that Jordan is for Jordanians and Palestine is for Palestinians. Our response to deportations is steadfast and unwavering.
Egypt’s foreign ministry also said it “rejects the deportation or encouragement of the transfer or removal of Palestinians from their land.”
Throughout the war, Jordan and Egypt have brushed off domestic demands to sever ties with Israel, and Egypt has played a key mediating role between Israel and Hamas.
In October 2023, protests erupted in both countries in support of the Palestinians in Gaza, with many expressing displeasure at their governments’ cooperation with Israel because of the high human toll of Israel’s war.
Tahrir Institute’s Kaldas said accepting Palestinian population transfers would be more costly for both countries than losing US aid on which both countries depend.
Egypt and Jordan are already hosting large numbers of refugees.
According to the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR, 877,000 refugees and asylum seekers were registered in Egypt as of January. In May, Diab al-Louh, the Palestinian ambassador in Cairo, said 100,000 Gazans had entered Egypt since the war began, according to Reuters.
In Jordan, more than 2.39 million Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA, the United Nations’ Palestinian refugee agency, the agency said.
Al-Hassan said that if their areas become a target for attacks on Israel, both countries may face security concerns. He said this could further strain their peace accords with Israel.
“By seeking to empty Gaza of its Palestinian inhabitants, Trump … is the target of Israel’s far-right fanatics,” Al-Ahsan said. Bidding.”
“The irony is that Trump’s proposal, if implemented, would actually be self-defeating,” he said. Destabilizing Egypt and Jordan would “support Islamist political forces, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood” and make them “less friendly to the United States and more sympathetic to Hamas.”
