Israel Reviews Post-War Plans for Gaza

Palestinians search for survivors or victims among the rubble in Fallujah in the Jabalia camp in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli strike (EPA)
Palestinians search for survivors or victims among the rubble in Fallujah in the Jabalia camp in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli strike (EPA)
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Israel Reviews Post-War Plans for Gaza

Palestinians search for survivors or victims among the rubble in Fallujah in the Jabalia camp in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli strike (EPA)
Palestinians search for survivors or victims among the rubble in Fallujah in the Jabalia camp in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli strike (EPA)

The Israeli government has established two ministerial committees to formulate a position regarding the future of the Gaza Strip after the war.

Several Israeli plans were made public, including one discussing the deportation of Gazans to Egypt’s Sinai, which was met with an angry Egyptian response.

Political sources in Tel Aviv said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made it clear that thoughtful decisions must be made, criticizing the "irresponsible" leaks.

The sources confirmed that Netanyahu took this step after he understood that the US administration was concerned about the deportation of Gazans to Sinai and the angry Egyptian and Jordanian responses.

US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf arrived in Israel to prepare for the upcoming visit of State Secretary Antony Blinken.

Blinken is due to arrive for a Middle Eastern tour on Friday.

Leaf said the war must have a clear political goal, so that Israel's allies are clear on their support.

Washington hoped the concerned parties would agree on a formulation that would pave the way for a political process leading to a solution.

Recent leaks revealed several plans to displace the residents of Gaza. One project was prepared by the Ministry of Intelligence, and the other by the Misgav Institute, led by Meir Ben-Shabbat.

Ben-Shabbat spent ten years working as Netanyahu's aide and envoy for special missions. The Prime Minister then appointed him as head of the National Security Council and assigned him to the Abraham Accords.

The first plan discussed deporting Gazans to Egyptian cities, while the second aimed to send them to the Sinai desert, with the option of absorbing large groups into Western countries.

Both schemes aim to push the people of Gaza by force to the Strip's southern region until there isn't enough food, water, or medicine and then they are pushed to the Egyptian Sinai.

Egypt will be forced to open the Rafah crossing and receive them.

The Ministry's plan does not address the fate of the Gaza Strip. However, the plan issued by Misgav Institute discussed destroying the infrastructure in the enclave and turning the region into an Israeli tourist area.

The paper issued by the Ministry aims to influence the Palestinians, seeking they'd view Hamas as the cause of their woes. It also plans to ensure they'd remember for generations that whoever inflicts such a deep wound on Israel will pay a heavy price, such as losing land and homeland and not just lives.

On Friday, the US Secretary will visit Tel Aviv and several regional countries as part of a new Middle Eastern tour as the war waged by Israel on the Gaza Strip enters its fifth week.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that Blinken “will travel to Israel on Friday for meetings with members of the Israeli government and then will make other stops in the region."

According to political sources in Tel Aviv, the meetings with Leaf indicated that Blinken intends to review the war's course and its compatibility with the US vision.

They noted that Blinken's discussions with Israeli officials would reiterate the goal of retrieving the hostages, striking a fatal blow at Hamas, monitoring fuel entrance into the Gaza Strip, and saving hospitals.



Survivors, Bodies Recovered from Capsized Red Sea Tourist Boat

25 November 2024, Egypt: Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi (R) checks on tourists rescued from capsized tourist boat called "Sea Story" that sank off Egypt's Red Sea coast. (Red Sea Governorate/dpa)
25 November 2024, Egypt: Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi (R) checks on tourists rescued from capsized tourist boat called "Sea Story" that sank off Egypt's Red Sea coast. (Red Sea Governorate/dpa)
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Survivors, Bodies Recovered from Capsized Red Sea Tourist Boat

25 November 2024, Egypt: Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi (R) checks on tourists rescued from capsized tourist boat called "Sea Story" that sank off Egypt's Red Sea coast. (Red Sea Governorate/dpa)
25 November 2024, Egypt: Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi (R) checks on tourists rescued from capsized tourist boat called "Sea Story" that sank off Egypt's Red Sea coast. (Red Sea Governorate/dpa)

Rescuers on Tuesday recovered five survivors and four bodies from a dive boat that capsized off Egypt's eastern coast a day earlier, Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi said.  

A military-led team rescued two Belgians, one Swiss national, one Finnish tourist and one Egyptian, the governor said, bringing the total number of survivors from the accident to 33.  

The "Sea Story" had been carrying 31 tourists of multiple nationalities and a 13-member crew when it was hit by a large wave near Marsa Alam in southeastern Egypt early on Monday, causing it to capsize.

The four bodies recovered on Tuesday have not yet been identified, and eight people are still missing after 28 were rescued on Monday.

A government source close to rescue operations said the five survivors were found on Tuesday morning inside the boat, which the governor said had been thrown on its side by an early morning wave but had not completely sunk.  

The group had spent at least 24 hours in the overturned vessel after authorities first received distress calls at 5:30 AM (0330 GMT) on Monday.  

"Rescue operations are ongoing today, supported by a military helicopter and a frigate in addition to multiple divers," the Red Sea governor told AFP Tuesday, declining to provide any further details about the operation.  

The four bodies recovered on Tuesday were also located inside the stricken vessel.  

The boat had embarked on a multi-day diving trip on Sunday and had been due to dock on Friday at the town of Hurghada, 200 kilometers (124 miles) north.  

The governor on Monday said it capsized "suddenly and quickly within 5-7 minutes" of the impact with the wave, leaving some passengers -- among them European, Chinese and American tourists -- unable to set out of their cabins in time.  

- Still missing -  

Rescuers from the military and a passing tourist boat pulled 28 people from the water on Monday.  

According to a source at a hospital in Marsa Alam, six tourists and three Egyptians were admitted with minor injuries and discharged on Monday.   

According to the governor's office, the boat was carrying tourists from Belgium, Britain, China, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.  

Among the missing are two Polish tourists and one from Finland, according to both countries' foreign ministries.  

Authorities in Egypt have said the vessel was fully licensed and had passed all inspection checks. A preliminary investigation showed no technical fault.  

There were at least two similar boat accidents in the Marsa Alam area earlier this year, but no fatalities.  

The Red Sea coast is a major tourist destination in Egypt, a country of 107 million that is in the grip of a serious economic crisis.  

Nationally, the tourism sector employs two million people and generates more than 10 percent of its GDP.  

Dozens of dive boats crisscross between Red Sea coral reefs and islands off Egypt's eastern coast every day, where safety regulations are robust but unevenly enforced.