Arab Countries Prepare to Hold Summit against Gaza Displacement Plan

Palestinians walk past destroyed houses along a street in Al-Shatea refugee camp amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, 07 February 2025. (EPA)
Palestinians walk past destroyed houses along a street in Al-Shatea refugee camp amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, 07 February 2025. (EPA)
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Arab Countries Prepare to Hold Summit against Gaza Displacement Plan

Palestinians walk past destroyed houses along a street in Al-Shatea refugee camp amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, 07 February 2025. (EPA)
Palestinians walk past destroyed houses along a street in Al-Shatea refugee camp amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, 07 February 2025. (EPA)

Consultations are underway to hold an emergency Arab summit to counter US President Donald Trump’s plans to displace the residents of the Palestinian Gaza Strip.

An informed diplomatic source told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday that contacts are underway between members of the Arab League to hold the summit in Cairo.

The summit aims to coordinate Arab stances to confront the Palestinian displacement proposal and to draft reconstructions plans for Gaza.

The source said talks are underway to set a date for the summit.

Egypt said on Friday it had been in contact with Arab partners including Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to firm up the region's rejection of any displacement of Palestinians.

Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had been in communication with counterparts from 11 nations, a statement said.

Those had emphasized "the constants of the Arab position on the Palestinian cause, rejecting any measures aimed at displacing the Palestinian people from their land, or encouraging their transfer to other countries outside the Palestinian territories," it said.

Trump has suggested the US take control of Gaza from Israel and create a "Riviera of the Middle East" after resettling Palestinians elsewhere including Egypt and Jordan. But Arab nations want to see a two-state solution with a separate Palestinian homeland alongside Israel.

Moving Palestinians would represent "flagrant violation of international law, an infringement on Palestinian rights, a threat to security and stability in the region and an undermining of opportunities for peace and coexistence among its peoples," Egypt's statement said.

Meanwhile, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stressed to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres the need to speed up Gaza’s reconstruction to ensure that life returns to normal in the coastal enclave.

They stressed during a telephone call their rejection of the displacement of the Palestinians and the need for them to remain Gaza. They underscored the importance of international efforts to that end.

Moreover, Sisi emphasized the need for the implementation of the two-state solution that would secure the establishment of an independent Palestinian state according to the 1967 borders with east Jerusalem as its capital.

Sisi and Guterres also tackled Egypt’s efforts to consolidate the ceasefire in Gaza. They discussed the prisoner and hostage exchange between Hamas and Israel and the delivery of aid to Gaza.



Sweida Clashes Renew Debate Over Tribal Alliances and Kurdish Forces in Syria

Fighters from the Bedouin clans in the city of Sweida on Saturday (AFP) 
Fighters from the Bedouin clans in the city of Sweida on Saturday (AFP) 
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Sweida Clashes Renew Debate Over Tribal Alliances and Kurdish Forces in Syria

Fighters from the Bedouin clans in the city of Sweida on Saturday (AFP) 
Fighters from the Bedouin clans in the city of Sweida on Saturday (AFP) 

The recent violent clashes in Sweida between local Druze factions and pro-government Bedouin tribes have reignited concerns over the stability of tribal alliances across Syria. As Arab tribes rallied to support the Bedouins, speculation mounted that a similar tribal uprising could erupt in eastern and northern Syria, where US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) maintain a stronghold.

The fear of a broader tribal insurgency grew after thousands of tribal fighters reportedly mobilized toward the Sweida front from provinces such as Aleppo, Deir ez-Zor, and Raqqa, areas that remain divided between the SDF, a Kurdish-Arab coalition, and the Syrian government.

However, Sheikh Maan Hamidi Daham al-Jarba, head of the Shammar tribe, dismissed the possibility of the Sweida scenario repeating itself in northeastern Syria.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, he praised the SDF and its commander, General Mazloum Abdi, for achieving what he called “historic political balances and understandings” during a highly sensitive phase. The Shammar’s military wing, the Sanadid Forces - numbering between 7,000 and 10,000 fighters - have been key SDF partners since 2013, operating primarily along Syria’s eastern border with Iraq.

The SDF, established in 2015, introduced itself as a unified national military force representing Arabs, Kurds, Syriacs, and other communities in Syria. Earlier this year, its commander, Abdi, signed a landmark agreement with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa to integrate the SDF and its civilian administration into the Ministry of Defense and national institutions by the end of 2025.

Bedir Mulla Rashid, a Kurdish affairs analyst at the Raman Center for Research, noted that the SDF’s power base has long rested on alliances with Arab tribal councils. While he acknowledged that the Sweida events could shake dynamics in the northeast, he ruled out an imminent tribal uprising. He emphasized ongoing US efforts to stabilize the region, partial sanctions relief, and a peace process between Türkiye and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), as factors discouraging escalation.

“There is no equivalent to the Sweida factions in the northeast,” Rashid said. “Nor is there a regional power willing to fuel a confrontation with the SDF, especially as Türkiye is currently focused on internal reconciliation with the Kurds.”

In regions like al-Jazira and the Euphrates, tribal divisions have deepened over the course of Syria’s conflict. Last summer, tribal infighting erupted in deadly clashes. Yet, figures like Akram Mahshoush al-Zoubaa, head of the Elders Council within the Autonomous Administration and adviser to the Jabour tribe, remain adamant that the recent unrest should not be viewed as a model for the east.

“These movements do not reflect the values of Arab tribes,” al-Zoubaa said. “The SDF represents all components of society, despite ongoing efforts by various actors to sow division.”