The request directed by US President Joe Biden to the US House of Representatives on October 20, for additional financial appropriations worth $106 billion, part of which will be allocated to support Israel and Ukraine, reveals a desire to allocate part of the amount to “immigration and refugee assistance,” worth Approximately four billion dollars ($3,495,000,000), to meet humanitarian needs in Ukraine and assist refugees there, in addition to helping refugees in response to the situation in Israel and in the areas affected by the situation therein.

What is striking in the request is what is stated in the statement: “The funding will also provide life-saving humanitarian assistance in Israel, and in areas affected by the situation in Israel. These resources will support displaced civilians and those affected by the conflict, including Palestinian refugees in Gaza and the West Bank, and meet the potential needs of the population.” "This will include food and non-food items, health care, emergency shelter support, water and sanitation assistance, and emergency protection."

He added: “This will also include potentially critical humanitarian infrastructure costs needed for refugees to provide access to essential life-sustaining support. This crisis could lead to cross-border displacement and increased regional humanitarian needs, and funding could be used to meet evolving programming requirements outside of Gaza.” 

An American funding request that includes meeting the potential needs of Gaza residents fleeing to neighboring countries

Displacement of Gazans is a possibility

The clear talk about providing funding to “meet the potential needs of Gazans fleeing to neighboring countries” and the possibility that “the crisis will lead to cross-border displacement” reaffirms that the American administration is placing on its agenda the possibility of displacing Gazans outside the Strip, despite the denials of American officials, including a minister. State Department Anthony Blinken publicly stated this idea, and said in a television interview on October 16 that Washington does not support this idea.

But what Washington says publicly contradicts what is leaking in secret, especially with what the Associated Press reported on October 12 about a “senior Egyptian official,” whose identity was not revealed, saying that the Egyptian authorities “rejected an American proposal to allow Palestinians to flee the bombing.” Israeli forces to leave the Gaza Strip toward Egyptian territory. The official added, "Egypt is holding talks with Israel and the United States regarding establishing safe corridors inside Gaza and delivering humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinians."

A senior Egyptian official: Cairo rejected an American proposal to allow Palestinians fleeing Israeli bombing to leave the Gaza Strip towards Egyptian territory.

With the intensification of the aggression against Gaza, especially the occupation’s intention to carry out a possible ground invasion, with what it entails causing the flow of numbers of Gazans towards the south first and then towards the border with Egypt second, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper correspondent Bar Shalem Or reported yesterday that the Israeli Minister of Intelligence Gila Gamliel proposed a plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza to Sinai. Shalem Or pointed out in a series of tweets on his account on the “X” platform that the right-wing “Misgav” Center also called for using the war to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt. He noted that the Center issued a paper a few days ago entitled “A rare opportunity to expel all residents of the Gaza Strip to Egypt.”

Orr added that the paper, which Amir Feitman, a leader in the ruling Likud Party, contributed to preparing, calls for the settlement of Palestinians who will be expelled in Egyptian cities located on the outskirts of Cairo. According to the paper issued, the center recommends that the displacement process take place through Israel’s contribution to raising the necessary funds to settle Palestinians inside Egypt.

A displacement plan towards Egypt and Jordan

For his part, Shmuel Meir, a former researcher in the Israeli Military Intelligence Division “AMAN,” said that according to right-wing forces in Israel, the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt is a first stage followed by another stage, which is their expulsion of Palestinians from the West Bank to Jordan. While Cairo adopts a public position rejecting any displacement of Palestinians towards Sinai, this possibility appears to be strongly present on the US administration’s agenda, despite US officials’ public statements about rejecting displacement from Gaza.

In the same context, an informed Egyptian source told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed last week that “American and Western pressure is mounting towards Egypt regarding absorbing numbers of residents of the northern region of Gaza, amid Western and American offers to Cairo of economic concessions that will help the exhausted Egyptian economy withstand during the period.” "The next one."

While US administration officials did not publicly mention the idea of transferring the people of Gaza to Sinai, they did talk about “safe passages,” including US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who said in a press conference on October 10 that his country was holding talks with Israel and Egypt about providing a “safe passage.” for civilians in Gaza,” and that there are “ongoing consultations” on this issue, without explaining where this safe passage will reach.

Source: Al-Araby Al-Jadeed