Diplomacy & Geopolitics
Gaza removal plans threaten Trump peace, 8 nations say
Eight Islamic and Arab countries said Israeli ministers' plans to remove Palestinians from the Gaza Strip would jeopardise a US-backed peace plan, issuing a joint condemnation on Sunday after a US envoy denied Israel intended forced displacement.
The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Indonesia and Turkey condemned what they called plans and mechanisms aimed at forcibly expelling Palestinians from their land.
They said such measures directly challenged international efforts to achieve peace, including President Donald Trump's October 2025 plan to end the conflict in Gaza, which they said firmly rejected forced displacement.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday the government had plans to remove Palestinians from Gaza but was waiting for US approval on where to displace the territory's population. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said Thursday the plan aimed to remove 250,000 Palestinians from Gaza in the first year, followed by the rest of the roughly two million residents over the next six years.
On Saturday, US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said Israel was not planning to force Palestinians out of Gaza. He said the Trump administration wanted Palestinians to have the option to leave by choice.
Forced displacement of civilians from occupied territory is considered a war crime under the Geneva Conventions. Virtually the entire population of Gaza has already been displaced internally during Israel's military offensive after the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Update
The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Indonesia and Turkey condemned Israeli ministers' Gaza removal proposals.
The eight countries said the proposals jeopardise US-backed peace efforts in Gaza.
They said the measures directly challenge President Donald Trump's October 2025 peace plan, which they said rejects forced displacement.
Source note: AFP news report published on 6 September 2026 at 10:26:07 UTC.
Update
US ambassador Mike Huckabee said during a West Bank visit that there was no Israeli plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza against their will.
Huckabee said Palestinians should have the option to leave Gaza by choice and said he knew of no one who supported forced displacement.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir laid out a plan for 250,000 Palestinians to leave Gaza in the first year, followed by the rest of the roughly two million residents over the following six years.
Source note: AFP news report published on 5 September 2026 at 11:05:29 UTC.
Update
The US ambassador said Israel is not planning forced displacement from Gaza.
Source note: AFP news report published on 5 September 2026 at 09:28:22 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
Israeli ministers have described removal proposals, while the US ambassador to Israel denied that Israel has a plan for forced displacement.
The item does not say what action, if any, the eight countries plan beyond their joint condemnation.
Source
AFP news report published on .