Egyptians protest against Trump’s plan to “clean out” Gaza
On the 31st of January, thousands of Egyptians gathered near the Rafah border to protest the U.S president Donald Trump’s proposal to resettle Palestinian refugees and “clean out” the Gaza strip, reported Anadolu Ajansı.
Trump suggested that Egypt and Jordan should take in Palestinians from Gaza, which he deemed a “demolition site” following Israel’s genocidal war which has rendered most of its 2.3 million people homeless.
This implicit move to end the two-state solution and to place the burden of the Palestinian problem on the neighboring Arab states drew immediate condemnation from Cairo and Amman. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said that the displacement of Palestinians can “never be tolerated” while Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi affirmed that the kingdom’s opposition to the uprooting of Gaza’s population remains “irreversible and unchanged.”
As it stands, Jordan is currently home to several million Palestinians, while tens of thousands live in Egypt. Both countries and other Arab nations are grappling with the security concerns associated with transferring large numbers of Palestinians. Moreover, both countries have affirmed their support for the resilience of the Palestinian people on their land.
READ: Palestinian Authority ready to ‘clash’ with Hamas over Gaza control
However, in response, Trump doubled down, reiterating his demands that Egypt and Jordan accept Gazan refugees. He asserted, “We do a lot for them, and they’re gonna do it,” a brazen remark that suggests the leveraging of U.S. aid, of which both nations are among the top recipients.
The comment may well have made Sisi nervous. Reuters reported on the “rare state-sanctioned protest.” According to Egyptian security sources, parties associated closely with Sisi sent buses to transport protestors to the border crossing, where civilian movement is normally restricted. The outpour signified that the disapproval was not merely contained to leadership as demonstrators waved Egyptian and Palestinian flags, chanting, “Egypt is a red line! No to displacement!”
Anadolu Ajansı, Al Jazeera, RT, Reuters
