Egypt Daily News – Sources have revealed that Egypt rejects any proposals regarding the future administration of the Gaza Strip. Sources stated that Egypt affirms that Palestinians will be the ones to govern Gaza. They added that Egypt insists on rebuilding Gaza without displacing its residents.
The sources emphasized that “Egypt will not be drawn into any attempts to administer Gaza.”
Earlier, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid proposed on Tuesday that Egypt take over the administration of Gaza for at least the next eight years after the end of the war between Israel and Hamas, in exchange for the international community covering Egypt’s foreign debt.
Speaking at a forum at a Washington research center, the former Israeli prime minister said, “The solution is for Egypt to take responsibility for administering Gaza for eight years, with the option to extend it to 15 years.”
He added, “At the same time, Egypt’s foreign debt will be paid off by the international community and regional allies.”
Lapid’s proposal includes Egypt leading a “peace force” involving the international community and Arab countries to “manage and rebuild” the war-ravaged enclave, which has suffered over 15 months of conflict since Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
He added, “During that period, conditions for self-governance will be established, and the process of fully demilitarizing the Gaza Strip will be completed.” Lapid announced his proposal in a speech he delivered in Washington, followed by a post on the platform X. He wrote, “I recently presented in Washington a plan for the day after the war in Gaza.”
He added, “At the core of the plan: Egypt takes responsibility for Gaza for 15 years, while the international community cancels its external debt of $155 billion.” He continued, “After about a year and a half of fighting, the world was surprised that Hamas still controls Gaza. No one in the current Israeli government has presented a realistic alternative.”
Lapid went on to say, “For political and religious reasons, the (Benjamin) Netanyahu-led Israeli government has failed to take steps to establish an effective government in Gaza capable of expelling Hamas.” He argued that Israel’s southern border with Gaza faces “two major problems that threaten Israel’s security and the entire region.”
He stated, “The first problem is that the world needs a new solution for Gaza: Israel cannot agree to Hamas remaining in power, the Palestinian Authority is incapable of governing Gaza, an Israeli occupation is undesirable, and continued chaos poses a serious security threat to Israel.” He claimed that “the second problem is that the Egyptian economy is on the verge of collapse, threatening the stability of Egypt and the entire Middle East. The $155 billion in foreign debt prevents Egypt from rebuilding its economy and strengthening its military,” according to him.
He continued, “Based on this, we propose a single solution to these two problems: Egypt takes responsibility for administering the Gaza Strip for 15 years, while the international community and its regional allies cover its foreign debt.”
Lapid added that during these 15 years, “Gaza will be rebuilt, conditions for self-governance will be established, and Egypt will play a central role, overseeing reconstruction, which will further boost its economy.”
He argued that “this solution has historical precedent: Egypt controlled Gaza in the past, with the support of the Arab League, under the understanding that it was a temporary arrangement. This is what must happen again today.”
Egypt was legally responsible for the Gaza Strip for most of the period between 1948 and 1967.
Hamas has previously rejected any disarmament or removal from Gaza, emphasizing that any arrangements for the future of the territory must be decided through a “national Palestinian consensus.”
