An Egyptian source involved in the matter told Kan11 News that the Palestinian Authority insists on managing Gaza alone after the war, without Hamas, and is even in talks with the administration of President-elect Donald Trump on the matter.
In recent days, Egypt has tried to push agreements between the PA and Hamas regarding the civilian management of Gaza on the day after the war, but without success. The PA rejected the proposal due to a lack of trust in Hamas, and due to the fact that Hamas is trying to destabilize Judea and Samaria and introduce an Iranian agenda there.
And as the main Arab actors on the scene are dividing the bear’s carcass among them while the bear is still very much alive, Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Tuesday will present a plan on outlining strategies for rebuilding and governing Gaza following the Israel-Hamas war, according to three US officials cited by Axios.
BLINKEN THE TIRELESS
As Blinken nears the end of his term at the State Department, he aims for his proposal to serve as a framework for future post-conflict plans for Gaza, including during the upcoming Trump administration. Blinken will outline his plan for rebuilding and governing Gaza in a speech at the Atlantic Council on Tuesday morning.
Last October, Secretary Blinken began working on a post-war plan for Gaza, drawing on ideas developed by Israel and the United Arab Emirates, according to Axios. He intended to unveil the plan after the presidential election. However, the proposal has sparked significant controversy within the State Department, leading to internal disputes. Some officials expressed concerns that the plan could disproportionately favor Netanyahu’s agenda while sidelining the Palestinian Authority and its chairman, Mahmoud Abbas.
To spearhead the initiative, Blinken appointed his adviser and close friend, Jamie Rubin, as the lead for the “day-after” strategy. Several weeks ago, Rubin visited Israel and the West Bank to discuss the plan with regional stakeholders. US officials revealed that Palestinian Authority representatives provided Rubin with a detailed list of reservations, indicating their lack of support for the proposal.
In an interview on Monday with MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, the secretary of state explained: “The President, when he put out the framework, made clear that during the first six weeks of this agreement … the conflict stops, Israel pulls back its forces, a lot of hostages come out, some prisoners are released by Israel, we surge humanitarian assistance, and we also use that time to try to finalize an agreement on an enduring ceasefire.”
“We’ve done a lot of work on that,” he continued. “We haven’t waited to get to the ceasefire itself. We’ve done a lot of work with Arab partners, with Israel, with others to try to reach an understanding on what would follow, basically a post-conflict plan, so that the vacuum that’s there – when Hamas is effectively not in charge and Israel pulls out – is filled by something that can run Gaza effectively.”
NO ONE IS SURE ABOUT THE DETAILS
Sources involved in the negotiations revealed to Al-Quds details of the agreement expected to be announced on Tuesday: “The Doha consultations will conclude today, and the agreement will be announced unless an emergency causes a temporary delay,” the Jerusalem-based daily reported.
The agreement reportedly includes the release of 1,000 prisoners from Gaza who were not involved in the October 7 attack in exchange for Israeli women, children, and elderly hostages. Additionally, approximately 200 prisoners serving life sentences will be released.
The sources also confirmed that late-night discussions resolved key issues related to the mechanism for withdrawing the IDF forces from the Gaza Strip.
Military and political pundit Amos Harel wrote in Haaretz Tuesday morning: “The negotiations on the hostage deal are on the verge of a positive conclusion: Israel has crossed the Rubicon under heavy American pressure and is now ready to announce an agreement, even before Donald Trump is sworn in as President of the United States in six days. However, there are, as usual, two reservations. One is that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could still try to back out of agreements, as has happened many times throughout the talks. The second is that despite the positive signals, last night they (the negotiators – DI) were still waiting for a final answer from Hamas, and in particular from the organization’s leader in the southern Gaza Strip, Muhammad Sinwar.”
When all else is lost, we’ll always have Hamas.
