Arab and Muslim states, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have issued the first joint call for Hamas to disarm and abandon power in the Gaza Strip as part of an effort to end wars on its territory.
A 22 Arab League, the entire European Union and 17 more countries supported the declaration signed at a UN conference co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and France on Tuesday.
The New York meeting aims to address “peaceful settlement of the Palestinian problem and implementation of two-state solutions,” and the declaration introduces the steps signatories think they should take next.
“Governance, law enforcement and security in all Palestine territories must lie only to Palestinian authority with appropriate international support. The joint document “should end control in Gaza and hand arms to Palestinian authority in the context of ending the war in Gaza.”
The text also condemned Hamas’ fatal attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, suggesting an invitation by the PA and a deployment of a “temporary international stabilization mission” “with the support of the United Nations.”
“We welcomed the preparations that some member states have been expressed to serve the military,” it said.
France, who co-chaired the conference, called the declaration “unprecedented.”
Speaking at the United Nations on Tuesday, French Foreign Minister Jean Noel Baro said, “Saudi Arabia, Arab and Muslim countries have expressed their hopes of having a normalized ties with Israel, as well as the terrorist acts of October 7, as well as the hope of having a normalized ties with Israel.”
Both mediators of ceasefire negotiations, Qatar and Egypt, have maintained ties with Hamas and Israel during the war.
The Gaza plan, developed by Egypt in March, excluded Hamas from the governance of the enclave once the war ended, a draft plan obtained by CNN showed.
The plan was discussed by Arab leaders holding a conference in Cairo at an emergency summit, and the Egyptian president proposed a Palestinian committee to temporarily govern Gaza.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly pushed for a revival of solutions in the two provinces.
France has said it will vote in September to recognize the Palestinian state and vote for Israel’s disappointment. The UK also said it would recognize the Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza. Israel and the United States both condemned the statements of France and the UK.
However, Hamas shows no indication of abandoning power on the enclave, but officials within extremist groups have had in the past been given contradictory statements about the role of the movement in postwar Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vehemently opposed the two states’ solutions, claiming it is incompatible with his country’s security.
