Israel projects aim to export the Gaza problem to Egypt’s Sinai

There has been an increase recently in Israeli projects seeking solutions to what it calls the “Gaza problem”. They have been focusing on Egypt’s Sinai, and appear to be foreshadowing a potential population transfer of Palestinians to the Sinai peninsula. Such a move would relieve Israel from the security burdens of managing Gaza and instead transfer it onto the Egyptian authorities.

The Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs, run by Dore Gold, a former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations and former Director-General of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, revealed a plan to solve the Gaza problem. This plan calls for a seaport and an airport in the Sinia thus facilitating travel for people and goods to and from Gaza. It also aims to establish a power plant and a water desalination project to meet the needs of the Palestinians in Gaza, as well as a train track extended from Al-Arish to Gaza and hotels and entertainment facilities.

This Israeli project was put together by Shimon Shapira, who served as the former Military Secretary to the Prime Minister and as Israel Foreign Ministry chief of staff, and by Shlomi Fogel, one of the proposers of the regional initiatives between Israel and its Arab neighbours. This relies on keeping economic and tourism projects under the responsibility of the Egyptian government. The inhabitants of Gaza will also be under Egyptian security supervision. This project is a continuation of the past Israeli government projects that call for extending Gaza south, towards Sinai.

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Bahrain’s Workshop: The Palestinian resistance can never be bought

….. One may ask: If the US administration “respects” the dignity of the Palestinian people, why has all its decisions regarding the conflict gone against them? How is cutting support for UNRWA and suggesting – as Grenblatt did – to dismantle it a sign of respect for the Palestinians?

During previous administrations, there were agreed principles that no US president crossed. These principles included the commitment to a two-state solution, support for UNRWA and more. However, under President Trump’s reign, we have witnessed the complete opposite: the move of the US embassy to Jerusalem, the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the closure of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) office in Washington and the recognition of Israel’s sovereignty over the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

We also have seen recently the US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, saying that Israel has the “right” to annex some of the West Bank, all of which indicate bias in the United States’ peace plan....

The everyday challenges that the Palestinians are facing have never changed. The only difference between the past and the present is that today, Palestinians are not only facing the Israeli occupation but instead are also facing additional challenges.

The first is some of the Gulf countries, which for the sake of strengthening ties with Israel have sold out the Palestinians….

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The steal of the century: stolen land, stolen water, stolen images

….. The message, in all its arrogance, was clear: if you don’t take what is on offer, it is going to get a hell of a lot worse. However, we know we have made it impossible for you to take what is on offer, so guess what? The two state solution is well and truly dead; the path to a greater Israel is secured; welcome to the new reality of Palestinian Bantustans in the West Bank and Gaza. And, oh yes, we promise to throw cash at you, $50 billion; that’s a lot of dosh, if you do what is commanded of you. If you don’t, well that money is off the table……

…. There you have it: in the eyes of Kushner, Netanyahu, et al, the path to peace lies through the annexation of what is left of most of the West Bank, including its most valuable agricultural asset, the Jordan Valley. It goes without saying, therefore, that Kushner’s Peace to Prosperity document has something to say about real estate and the settling of land claims. It is right there on page 19: “Project one, Property Ownership Resolution: Enhance court capacity to quickly and effectively resolve property disputes and contested-ownership claims.”

So the game is this: annex as much as possible using the guise of pursuing a peace deal; declare those lands and buildings already annexed as legally belonging to Israel; and then go to court to decide who gets whatever is left over. And, of course, you can guess whose courts and whose judges. Peace to Prosperity doesn’t say anything about it, but I think we know the answer.

Read the document a little further on and it gets worse. There is a whole section devoted to agriculture. It sounds wonderful until you reflect that the most valuable agricultural asset is already off the table. True, there is a water irrigation project to help sustain Palestinian farmers, but guess what? The Israelis already control West Bank aquifers including those in the Jordan Valley where they have drilled deep bores circumventing and cutting off Palestinian wells and requiring the Palestinians to buy their own water back from Israel....

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