On Saturday, Muslim foreign ministers opposed U.S. President Donald Trump’s demands to remove all Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and instead supported a proposal to establish an administrative committee of Palestinians to oversee the area so that rehabilitation could begin.
The second phase of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas was postponed, but in discussions with Egyptian and Qatari mediators in Cairo, the Palestinian group received “positive signals” that negotiations may resume. Although he did not provide any specifics, group spokesman Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua did state that the organization is ready to begin negotiations and that its team has been planning how to begin.
At a special session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Saudi Arabia, foreign ministers met to discuss the situation in Gaza, as the continuation of the ceasefire, which has been in place for seven weeks, is now in question. A permanent ceasefire, complete Israeli disengagement from Gaza, and the release of all remaining hostages are the goals of its second phase.
In response to Trump’s demand, the meeting endorsed a proposal to reconstruct Gaza that was proposed by Egypt and supported by Arab governments, such as Saudi Arabia and Jordan. With 57 member states, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is home to a predominantly Muslim world.
In their statement, the ministers condemned “plans aimed at displacing the Palestinian people individually or collectively… as ethnic cleansing, a grave violation of international law and a crime against humanity,” though they did not reference Trump by name.
In addition, they denounced what they called “policies of starvation” that seek to force Palestinians to flee, most likely alluding to Israel’s decision last week to cut off Gaza’s supplies in an effort to pressure Hamas into extending the first phase of the truce.
Syria was also re-enrolled as a member by the OIC. The savage repression of opposition rallies by then-President Bashar Assad led to Syria’s expulsion from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in 2012. In December, Islamist-led rebels overthrew Assad and established a transitional government, ending 14 years of civil conflict.
Following Hamas’ onslaught on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel launched a campaign of bombing and ground offensives to eliminate the organization. However, this war came to a halt in mid-January due to the Gaza truce. Nearly 2,000 Palestinians held by Israel were released in return for the release of 25 Israeli captives and the remains of eight more in the first phase of the truce, which concluded last Saturday.
However, Israel is unwilling to negotiate the details of the second phase. Instead, it has demanded that Hamas free half of the hostages still held as a condition for extending the first phase and promising to establish a permanent truce.
In a demand that Hamas adopt the amended agreement, Israel has blocked all supplies—including food, fuel, medication, and more—from reaching Gaza, a population of over 2 million, since Sunday.
Meanwhile, Trump has demanded the permanent relocation of Gaza’s residents so that the US may acquire the land and develop it for other people. Calls to depart have been rebuffed by Palestinians.
An Egyptian-backed plan to establish an administrative committee to run Gaza instead of Hamas was endorsed by the ministers at the OIC meeting. The committee’s operations will be carried out “under the umbrella” of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority. Despite its denial of the PA’s involvement in Gaza, Israel has failed to provide a replacement government to take over following the conflict.
The four European Union foreign ministers—France, Germany, Italy, and Britain—sent a joint statement expressing their support for the Arab proposal to rebuild Gaza, describing it as “a realistic path.” Additionally, they assert that “Hamas must neither govern Gaza nor be a threat to Israel anymore” and they back the PA’s dominant posture.
Israeli soldiers have retreated to an area near the borders of Gaza as part of the ceasefire agreement. Two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli attack in the southernmost city of Rafah early Saturday, according to the Health Ministry there. Several guys, who seemed to be piloting a drone that had infiltrated Israel, were struck by Israeli forces, according to the IDF.
More than 48,000 Palestinians, including women and children, have been murdered in Gaza as a result of Israel’s military onslaught. The number of militants among the casualties is not specified by the Gaza Health Ministry.
In an incident that occurred in October 2023, Hamas captured 251 individuals and killed almost 1,200 of them, the majority of them were civilians, within Israel. Ceasefire agreements or other deals have resulted in the release of the majority of them. According to reports, 24 captives are still alive and another 34 have been found by Hamas.