By 3 p.m. Cairo time, the 22-state bloc will debate the plan that could shape Gaza’s future. [Getty]
Algeria and Tunisia’s presidents will skip a high-profile Arab summit in Cairo meant to adopt a reconstruction plan for post-war Gaza, warning of pre-packaged solutions dictated by a select few.
Scheduled to convene this afternoon, the summit in Egypt was designed to rally the region behind Palestinians in the wake of Washington and Tel Aviv’s own proposals to transform Gaza into a so-called “Middle East Riviera” that many have describes was an attempt to ethnically cleanse the Palestinians from the coastal enclave.Â
However, tensions simmered over who gets to shape the region’s response to Washington.
Over the weekend, Algerian president Abdelmadjid Tebboune, long a vocal champion of Palestinian rights, pulled out, sending his foreign minister instead.
Speaking to the Algerian state news agency, an Algerian official anonymously said the Algerian president’s absence is a protest against an exclusionary process dominated by Arab heavyweights.
Tebboune, the official added, was particularly frustrated by efforts to sideline Algeria, despite its key role in the UN ceasefire resolution.
Tunisia‘s President Kais Saied followed suit on Monday, sending his foreign minister in what analysts see as a quiet nod to Algeria’s concerns. Under Saied, Tunis’ foreign policy often mirrors that of Algiers.
The North African leaders’ absence comes at a critical moment for the Arab League, which has struggled to maintain cohesion on Palestine.
While Saudi Arabia has distanced itself from US-backed Israeli normalisation efforts in recent months, it remains deeply involved in Washington’s regional plans.
Egypt, meanwhile, has played a central role in ceasefire negotiations and is now spearheading a post-war reconstruction plan for Gaza.
According to Reuters, Egypt’s proposal—seen as the frontrunner—would replace Hamas governance with an interim body controlled by Arab, Muslim-majority, and Western states.
The Governance Assistance Mission, as outlined, would oversee humanitarian aid and reconstruction efforts for an unspecified period.
The summit comes amid Israel reimposing a blockade on Gaza on the second day of Ramadan in a bid to pressure Hamas to accepting an extension of phase one of the ceasefire, a policy which has been labelled “collective punishment” by aid agencies.
By 3 p.m. Cairo time, the 22-state bloc will debate the plan that could shape Gaza’s future.
