Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty agreed Wednesday with White House Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff to continue consultations and coordination of a reconstruction plan for the Gaza Strip “as a foundation for efforts to rebuild” the enclave.
Abdelatty met Witkoff and Senior Director for the Middle East and North Africa on the US National Security Council, Eric Trager, on the sidelines of a meeting between Arab foreign ministers and the US envoy in Qatar, according to a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
Abdelatty outlined during the meeting “the stages and details of the Arab plan for Gaza reconstruction, which was approved at the extraordinary Arab Summit in Cairo on March 4, 2025.”
Egypt says it is capable of rebuilding the Gaza Strip in the shortest possible time after Israel's brutal war.
Five-year plan
The sides agreed to "continue consultations and coordination on the plan as the basis for reconstruction efforts" and to maintain communication as part of broader efforts to restore stability in the Middle East, it said.
The US envoy praised Egypt’s efforts in promoting peace and stability in the region. An Arab summit and Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting approved a comprehensive Arab plan to rebuild Gaza without displacing its Palestinian residents.
The plan is expected to take five years to complete, with an estimated cost of around $53 billion. The Arab proposal came after US President Donald Trump's plan to "take over" Gaza and resettle Palestinians to turn the territory into a tourist destination.
Genocide case against Israel
The idea was rejected by the Arab world and many other nations, who said it amounts to ethnic cleansing. More than 48,500 people have been killed, mostly women and children, in a brutal Israeli onslaught on Gaza since October 2023.
The assault was paused under a ceasefire and prisoner swap deal, which took hold in January.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
