A high-level meeting of five Arab countries will be held in Riyadh on February 20, the purpose of which is to prepare a response to US President Donald Trump's plan for the Gaza Strip, which envisages the displacement of Palestinians from the enclave, reported Agence France-Presse, quoted by BTA.
The summit will be attended by the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, Qatar and Jordan, as well as the Palestinian Authority. Its goal is to "examine Trump's plan in detail and prepare an Arab response", according to a source in the agency.
The meeting will be held a few days before a similar event in Egypt, scheduled for February 27. The Riyadh meeting is expected to emphasize that the countries reject the "displacement of Gazans" and their removal from the territory, according to the same source. It is likely to be attended by either Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas or his Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa.
Former construction developer and US President Donald Trump has proposed that Gaza be placed under US control and its residents expelled, creating a "Middle Eastern Riviera" instead. However, the Palestinians would not have the right to return there.
Arab countries unanimously rejected the plan that envisages the residents of Gaza being settled in Jordan and Egypt.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said yesterday that the US is open to proposals from Arab countries for Gaza, following Trump's plan. He said he hoped to discuss his ideas during his Middle East tour.
The US president warned Egypt and Jordan that if the two countries close to Washington refuse to accept Gaza's two million people, there could be consequences.
"All of these countries explain how much they care about the Palestinians, but none of them want to accept them. From that perspective, none of them have done anything for Gaza," Rubio stressed.
Jordan has already accepted nearly two million Palestinian refugees. Nearly half of the kingdom's 11 million population is of Palestinian origin, AFP recalls.
Egypt recently announced that it would present a "global vision" for the reconstruction of Gaza that would ensure that the Palestinians can keep their lands. According to diplomatic sources, the country has received agreement in principle to hold an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has 57 members.