Eight Arab and Islamic Nations Condemn Israeli Plans for Gazan Displacement

Foreign ministers from eight Arab and Islamic countries issued a strong condemnation on Sunday of recent statements by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Minister of Intelligence Gadi Eisenkot regarding the potential displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. The ministers described the remarks as a "blatant violation of the principles of international law."

Ben-Gvir and Eisenkot had recently proposed plans for the mass expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza, reviving ideas previously voiced by right-wing Israeli politicians over the past three years. The joint statement, released by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, came from the foreign ministers of Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. They denounced the Israeli ministers' comments, which included "proposing plans and mechanisms aimed at forcibly removing Palestinians from their land."

The ministers asserted that these "incendiary statements and proposals represent a blatant violation of the principles of international law, including international humanitarian law, and a direct threat to the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people." They rejected "any attempts or schemes aimed at displacing the Palestinian people, whether within the occupied Palestinian territories or outside them, under any name or pretext," warning against the transformation of calls for forced displacement into declared policy or practical measures.

The statement cautioned that such actions could undermine international efforts to achieve peace, including a U.S. plan to end the war in Gaza, which the statement noted rejects forced displacement. The ministers emphasized that the Gaza Strip is "an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territories" and called for the preservation of the territorial unity of Palestine, encompassing Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. They reiterated their call for a two-state solution, including the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Finally, the statement urged the UN Security Council and the international community to confront attempts to impose a new demographic or geographic reality in the occupied Palestinian territories and to ensure respect for international law.