| World News |
| Trump proposes Jordan, Egypt take in Gazans and ‘we just clean out’ decimated Strip. Jordan, Egypt reject idea |
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US President Donald Trump said Saturday he’d like to see Jordan, Egypt and other Arab nations increase the number of Palestinian refugees they are accepting from the Gaza Strip — potentially moving out enough of the population to “just clean out” the war-torn area and create a virtual clean slate. The proposal has to date been a red line for Arab states, particularly Jordan and Egypt, which have viewed the mass migration of Palestinians to their countries as a potential existential threat. They have pointed to Israel’s refusal to publicly commit to allowing any Palestinians who leave the Strip to later return, and don’t want to be seen as complicit in an exile of Palestinians. The fear of being unable to return has also deterred many Palestinians from leaving. Some did try during the war that began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel, slaughtered some 1,200 people and abducted 251. Over 100,000 Gazans succeeded in entering Egypt, though they were forced to pay exorbitant fees in order to do so and have largely not received any assistance upon arrival, as Cairo refuses to recognize them as refugees. The Biden administration also considered the idea of temporarily relocating some of the population early on in the war, as it sought to move Palestinians out of harm’s way, but so adamant were Jordan and Egypt in their refusal that it quickly shelved the notion. But Trump, known for often snubbing traditional foreign policy norms, sought to bring back the idea of mass Palestinian migration to neighboring countries on Saturday as his new administration tries to sustain the nascent ceasefire in Gaza and plan for the Strip’s reconstruction, while over two million people remain in a territory overwhelmingly destroyed by the past 15 months of war. Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas on Sunday condemned “any projects” to relocate the people of Gaza outside the Palestinian enclave after US President Donald Trump suggested moving them to Egypt and Jordan, adding to a chorus of rejection of the proposal from around the Arab world. Without naming the US leader, Abbas “expressed strong rejection and condemnation of any projects aimed at displacing our people from the Gaza Strip,” a statement from his office said, adding that the Palestinian people “will not abandon their land and holy sites.” Egypt rejects the idea of forced displacement of Palestinians, after US President Donald Trump suggested a plan to “clean out” the Gaza Strip and move its population to Egypt and Jordan. Cairo’s foreign ministry in a statement expresses Egypt’s “continued support for the steadfastness of the Palestinian people on their land.” It rejects “any infringement on those inalienable rights, whether by settlement or annexation of land, or by the depopulation of that land of its people through displacement, encouraged transfer or the uprooting of Palestinians from their land, whether temporarily or long-term.” |
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| Israel News |
| Israel says Arbel Yehud, Agam Berger and a third hostage to be freed Thursday |
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirms reaching a deal with Hamas over a dispute on hostage releases, saying that civilian Arbel Yehud, soldier Agam Berger and a third unnamed hostage will be released on Thursday. In addition, three more hostages will be freed on Saturday as scheduled. Israel also says that it has received from Hamas a document regarding whether or not the remaining hostages slated for release in the first stage of the ceasefire deal are still alive. In return, the IDF will allow the passage of Gazans to the northern part of the Strip beginning tomorrow morning, the PMO says. Netanyahu’s office says Israel reached an agreement with Hamas after “strong and determined negotiations,” and reiterates that it will “not tolerate any violation of the agreement.” |
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| White House Extends IDF’s Lebanon Withdrawal Deadline to February 18 |
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The White House announces that Israel’s deadline to withdraw from Lebanon has been extended to February 18, postponing the original Sunday deadline. Additionally, negotiations are underway for Lebanese prisoners to be released. The Whitehouse statement reads: “The arrangement between Lebanon and Israel, monitored by the United States, will continue to be in effect until February 18, 2025. The Government of Lebanon, the Government of Israel, and the Government of the United States will also begin negotiations for the return of Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023.” |
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