President Trump's remarks triggered a barrage of denunciations from Hamas. His vision, which includes massive Palestinian migration and US ownership of Gaza, directly threatens the terrorist organization's interests. Chief among them is maintaining the population as a human shield and a recruitment pool for terrorists, while continuing to control the Strip from behind the scenes, with the Palestinian Authority functioning as a puppet government. Unsurprisingly, the dramatic announcement caused considerable alarm.
Hamas quickly condemned the White House statements and called for an "emergency conference" of the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the United Nations, aiming to mount pressure against Trump's vision. Hamas understands that the Palestinians alone have limited influence over Washington, particularly under the current administration.
Yet, Hamas didn't have to work too hard. Arab states were already preparing to block the plan. This week saw a flurry of discussions among Arab leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas was invited to Jordan, where he firmly rejected Trump's statements. In recent days, the veteran Saudi prince Turki al-Faisal sent Trump an especially scathing letter. The former Saudi intelligence chief leveled a series of accusations against Israel, blaming it for creating the Gaza problem during the War of Independence.
As a Saudi researcher explained in an interview with Israel Hayom, the Palestinian issue has long been exploited by terrorist organizations to target Arab states themselves. This is one of the primary reasons for their strong opposition, and the war in Gaza has only reinforced it. It is no surprise, then, that the Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a harsh response to Trump's claim that Riyadh does not demand a Palestinian state as a condition for normalization with Israel. The statement asserted that Crown Prince bin Salman had repeatedly emphasized that "Saudi Arabia will not stop working for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and that there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel without it." It also highlighted that bin Salman has pressured countries to recognize a Palestinian state, conveying these messages to both the Trump administration and the previous Biden administration.
Egypt, for its part, faces a constant threat from Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood. Cairo harbors no illusions about Hamas, viewing its leadership as equally responsible for Egyptian soldiers' deaths in the Sinai Peninsula as the local ISIS affiliate. That group received Hamas support from Gaza in the previous decade until a joint Egyptian-Israeli operation dismantled it. Consequently, Cairo is pushing for the Palestinian Authority to take control of Gaza, even if Hamas continues to operate behind the scenes, following the "Hezbollah model" in Lebanon. Against this backdrop, PA Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa met with his Egyptian counterpart Mostafa Madbouly to "advance Gaza's reconstruction." Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aty also stressed the importance of strengthening the PA and transferring control of Gaza to it.
The same logic applies in Jordan. In response to Trump's remarks, lawmakers proposed a bill to "prevent Palestinian migration to Jordan," arguing that such a law would protect "national unity," affirm the kingdom's sovereignty, and reject the notion of "Palestinians migrating to Jordan as an alternative homeland." A casual observer might think Jordan lacks a significant Palestinian population, when in fact millions of Palestinians already reside in the kingdom. That, precisely, is why Jordan opposes any moves that might provoke unrest and destabilize the state.
The current hysteria echoes the paranoia surrounding Trump's previous "Deal of the Century" initiative, which his administration promoted during its first term. Back then, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas expressed deep concerns over the US plan to allow Israel to extend sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria. Ultimately, the main factor that derailed the move was the Abraham Accords with the UAE and Bahrain. The formal normalization between Israel and Arab states sidelined previous declarations about fundamentally reshaping the region. It is not inconceivable that the White House is once again creating a smokescreen, which may ultimately lead to a new agreement, this time with Saudi Arabia.
Still, not everyone in the Arab world is alarmed by the idea. Many Palestinians in Gaza, who have long been seeking any possible means to leave, expressed significant interest. This does not apply to the entire population, but to a substantial portion. Since the war began, an estimated 200,000 Palestinians have already left Gaza. Hundreds of thousands more may seize the opportunity to build a new life far from the illusions peddled by terrorist organizations.
At the same time, many others in Gaza remain steadfast in their support for Hamas and the concept of "steadfastness" (sumud), a commitment to staying on the land. Trump's words may only deepen their resolve.
Yet cracks are emerging in the so-called "Arab consensus." Senior Emirati commentator Amjad Taha questioned, "Why would anyone want Palestinians to remain in a war-torn region when the world could offer them a lifeline?" He went on to suggest, "Imagine an international initiative providing Gazans the option to relocate to temporary housing for ten years, away from destruction and danger, while Gaza is rebuilt, cleansed of Hamas terrorists, and transformed into a city of hope rather than hate, a place where children learn love and respect, rather than antisemitism and glorification of violence and abduction."
