US rejects alternate Gaza reconstruction plan

According to Saudi Gazette, the Trump administration has rejected a long-awaited plan for the reconstruction of Gaza endorsed by Arab leaders, saying the president stands by his own vision which includes expelling the territory’s Palestinian residents and transforming it into a “riviera” owned by the United States.

“The current proposal does not address the reality that Gaza is currently uninhabitable and residents cannot humanely live in a territory covered in debris and unexploded ordnance,” National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said in a statement Tuesday night.

“President Trump stands by his vision to rebuild Gaza free from Hamas. We look forward to further talks to bring peace and prosperity to the region.”

The postwar plan for the Gaza Strip, which was proposed by Egypt and calls for Hamas to cede power to an interim administration until a reformed Palestinian Authority (PA) can assume control, would allow its roughly 2 million Palestinians to remain, in contrast to Trump’s proposal.

Speaking in Cairo, PA President Mahmoud Abbas pledged that general elections will be held in the West Bank, Gaza and occupied East Jerusalem for the first time in nearly two decades “if circumstances are suitable.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still refuses to say what he envisions for Gaza’s post-war future, except to say that he endorses Trump’s plan for “a different Gaza.” And he thinks neither the PA nor Hamas should govern Gaza.

The US$53 billion proposal by Arab nations calls for rebuilding Gaza by 2030. The first phase calls for starting the removal of unexploded ordnance and clearing more than 50 million tons of rubble left by Israel’s bombardment and military offensives.

CNN obtained a copy of the document, which lays out an ambitious plan to develop shopping malls, an international convention center and even an airport within five years. It also aims to attract tourists by building resorts and enhancing the enclave’s Mediterranean coast.

It also acknowledges the difficulties that could be faced in disarming militants in the Gaza Strip.

“It is something that can be dealt with, and even ended forever, only if its causes are removed through a clear horizon and a credible political process,” it says.

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters on Tuesday that the group’s arms were non-negotiable.

“The weapon of the resistance is a red line, and it is not negotiable,” he said. “We will not accept (any deal) to trade it for reconstruction or the entry of aid.”

Hamas has sent mixed signals about its future in Gaza in recent weeks. Analysts have said that while the group has shown that it is willing to discuss demilitarization as an end goal of a peace process, it is keen not to allow it to become a prerequisite of the process.

Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, said last month that the group will not disarm and may even grow after the war in Gaza.

Last week, Hamas official Husam Badran said that the group was willing to step aside from governing Gaza.

“Our only condition is for this to be an internal Palestinian matter – we will not allow any regional or international party to get involved,” he told Al Arabiya. “As long as there is national consensus, Hamas will not be involved in the governance.”

Israel has blocked the entry of food, fuel, medicine and other supplies to Gaza to pressure Hamas to accept the agreement and has warned of additional consequences, raising fears of a return to fighting.

The suspension of aid drew widespread criticism, with human rights groups saying that it violated Israel’s obligations as an occupying power under international law.

Speaking at the summit announcing the plan for Gaza’s future, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said there would be no “true peace” without the establishment of the Palestinian state.

Israel has vowed to maintain open-ended security control over both Gaza and the West Bank, which it captured in the 1967 Mideast war and which Palestinians want for their future state. Israel’s government and most of its political class are opposed to Palestinian statehood.

 

Israel: Eyal Zamir new IDF Chief

According to media reports, Eyal Zamir replaced Herzi Halevi as IDF chief of staff on Wednesday, also being promoted to lieutenant general, in the ceremony led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and in the presence of all of the leaders of the defense establishment.

Along with the entire IDF high command, Mossad Director David Barnea and Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar were also in attendance, as was CENTCOM chief Michael Kurilla.

Netanyahu opened the speech thanking Kurilla, saying, “Your relationship with General Herzi Halevi was a tangible asset to our national security.”

“Until a few generations ago, we were pushed from place to place like straw in the wind,” but we returned our control of our fate, and “our history is [framed as] before the establishment of the IDF and after it. This doesn’t mean our enemies can’t attack us. We saw this on October 07, 2023 but unlike before we can” take the war to them, said the prime minister.

Netanyahu promised Israel would return all of the hostages and end Hamas’s military and political rule.

Next, he said that although Zamir had lost the race for IDF chief twice, that the third time was a charm and “the time of Zamir.”

He said that he had been very impressed by Zamir’s capabilities as his military secretary, in particular his ability to coordinate between the defense and political echelons.

The prime minister also complimented Zamir in his work at the defense ministry in helping Israel to become more independent in producing more of its own weaponry.

 

Lebanon controlled by “Eisenhower Doctrine”

The pretexts that imperialist colonial powers follow to expand their influence vary. What is happening at Beirut airport in Lebanon is nothing new. It is obvious that the US is trying to ensure its control over Lebanon’s vital facilities and airports.

It is evident that the recent expansion work undertaken by the US in Lebanon is aimed at encircling the resistance, or at the very least, exerting pressure on the Lebanese authorities to incite them against the resistance under the pretext of avoiding severe brutal sanctions.

Preventing Iranian flights from landing at Beirut airport seems to be a part of US President Donald Trump’s plan to control the world, sometimes by proposing plans to displace Palestinians and other times by occupying countries.

Washington considers controlling the northern part of the West Asia region, in addition to the southern part, especially the Persian Gulf countries, a fundamental issue in light of the conflict with competing powers, as was the case decades ago when the Soviet Union existed.

The “Eisenhower Doctrine” was implemented in the 1950s, during the era of President Camille Chamoun, when the US naval forces landed on the shores of Beirut. Their interest was focused on Beirut airport because ensuring influence lies in tightening the noose around strategic outlets such as public facilities and airports.

This is exactly what is happening today, as the US embassy in Beirut is only functioning as a military base that insults the sovereignty and prestige of the Lebanese state whenever it wants.

Since Beirut air base is the only international airport in Lebanon, it has sought to reactivate some airports, such as Rayak air base, which currently witnesses a suspicious American and British military presence, given its strategic location in the heart of the Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border.

In 2011, Rayak air base was officially opened as a military air base for the Lebanese army. Before opening, the airport underwent expansion work funded and supervised directly by the US embassy.

Recently, it underwent additional expansion work as large capacity hangars were added to it. It was equipped with modern radars and surveillance devices.

It is worth noting that the Lebanese army used Rayak air base during its battles with Jolani’s terrorist groups during the Liberation of the Bekaa Outskirts Battle in 2015, which culminated in late August 2017 with the total elimination of all terrorists in the eastern chain of Lebanon and its liberation.

The US embassy also controls Qlayaat air base on the northern coast of Lebanon as a logistical base linking them to US bases in Cyprus, Greece, and the rest of West Asia. 

It is worth noting that Qlayaat air base is close to Syria and close to the Russian air and naval bases in Tartous and Latakia, which enhances its strategic importance for the Americans.

There is also effort to establish a facility at Qlayaat air base to facilitate the entry of weapons to support their anti-Hezbollah proxies in Lebanon. 

Lebanon’s airports are small in size but large in influence, just as Lebanon itself, which is small in size but great in influence.

Courtesy: Tehran Times

Arabs reject forced Palestinian displacement

According to Saudi Gazette, the emergency Arab summit in Cairo has officially adopted Egypt’s Gaza reconstruction plan to rebuild the war-torn Gaza Strip, emphasizing the need for early recovery and comprehensive restoration efforts.

In its final statement, the summit announced the adoption of Egypt’s proposal, developed in coordination with Palestine and Arab nations, and based on studies by the World Bank and the United Nations Development Fund.

The plan is set to serve as a comprehensive Arab initiative to rebuild Gaza’s infrastructure and revive essential services.

The summit firmly rejected any forced displacement of Palestinians from their land, stating that such actions would constitute a crime under international law.

To reinforce this stance, an Arab legal committee has been assigned to examine whether the forced displacement of Palestinians can be classified as part of the crime of genocide.

Additionally, the statement condemned Israel’s recent decision to halt humanitarian aid to Gaza and close key border crossings used for relief efforts.

The summit labeled these actions as violations of the ceasefire agreement, international law, and international humanitarian law.

It also denounced Israel’s use of siege tactics and starvation of civilians as a means to achieve political objectives, calling for unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.

Gazans face tough choice, stay or go away

The level of destruction in Jabalia when viewed from the air is truly astonishing. A Hiroshima-like wasteland stretches as far as the eye can see. The mangled carcasses of buildings dot the churned-up landscape, some leaning at crazy angles.

Great undulating waves of rubble make it all but impossible to make out the geography of this once bustling, tightly packed refugee camp. And yet, as a drone camera flies over the wreckage, it picks out splashes of blue and white where small tent camps have been set up in patches of open ground.

And figures, clambering over broken buildings, moving along streets of dirt, where food markets are springing up under tin roofs and canvas awnings. Children using a collapsed roof as a slide. After more than six weeks of Gaza's fragile ceasefire, Jabalia is slowly coming back to life.

In the neighborhood of al-Qasasib, Nabil has returned to a four-story house that's somehow still standing, even if it lacks windows, doors and -- in some places -- walls. He and his relatives have made crude balconies out of wooden pallets and strung-up tarpaulin to keep out the elements.

"Look at the destruction," he says as he surveys Jabalia's ocean of ruins from a gaping upper floor.

"They want us to leave without rebuilding it? How can we leave? The least we can do is rebuild it for our children."

To cook a meal, Nabil lights a fire on the bare staircase, stoking it carefully with pieces of torn-up cardboard.

On another floor, Laila Ahmed Okasha washes up in a sink where the tap ran dry months ago. "There's no water, electricity or sewage," she says. "If we need water, we have to go to a far place to fill up buckets."

She says she cried when she came back to the house and found it wrecked. She blames Israel and Hamas for destroying the world she once knew. "Both of them are responsible," she says. "We had a decent, comfortable life."

Soon after the war began in October 2023, Israel told Palestinians in the northern part of the Gaza Strip – including Jabalia – to move south for their own safety. Hundreds of thousands of people heeded the warning, but many stayed, determined to ride out the war.

Laila and her husband Marwan clung on until October last year, when the Israeli military reinvaded Jabalia, saying Hamas had reconstituted fighting units inside the camp's narrow streets.

After two months of sheltering in nearby Shati camp, Leila and Marwan returned to find Jabalia almost unrecognizable.

"When we came back and saw how it was destroyed, I didn't want to stay here anymore," Marwan says. "I had a wonderful life, but now it's a hell. If I have the chance to leave, I'll go. I won't stay one more minute."

Stay or go? The future of Gaza's civilian population is now the subject of international debate.

In February, Donald Trump suggested that the US should take over Gaza and that nearly two million Palestinian residents should leave, possibly for good.

Faced with international outrage and fierce opposition from Arab leaders, Trump has subsequently appeared to back away from the plan, saying he recommended it but would not force it on anyone.

In the meantime, Egypt has led Arab efforts to come up with a viable alternative, to be presented at an emergency Arab summit in Cairo on Tuesday.

Crucially, it says the Palestinian population should remain inside Gaza while the area is reconstructed.

Donald Trump's intervention has brought out Gaza's famously stubborn side. "If Trump wants to make us leave, I'll stay in Gaza," Laila says. "I want to travel on my own free will. I won't leave because of him."

Across the way sits a nine-story yellow block of flats so spectacularly damaged it's hard to believe it hasn't collapsed.

The upper floors have caved in entirely, threatening the rest. In time, it will surely have to be demolished, but for now it's home to yet more families. There are sheets in the windows and washing hanging to dry in the late winter sunshine.

Most incongruously of all, outside a makeshift plastic doorway on a corner of the ground floor, next to piles of rubble and rubbish, stands a headless mannequin, wearing a wedding gown. It's Sanaa Abu Ishbak's dress shop.

The 45-year-old seamstress, mother of 11, set up the business two years before the war but had to abandon it when she fled south in November 2023.

She came back as soon as the ceasefire was announced. With her husband and daughters, she's been busy clearing debris from the shop, arranging dresses on hangers and getting ready for business. "I love Jabalia camp," she says, "and I won't leave it till I die."

Sanaa and Laila seem equally determined to stay put if they can. But both women speak differently when they talk of the young.

"She doesn't even know how to write her own name," Laila says of her granddaughter. "There's no education in Gaza."

The little girl's mother was killed during the war. Laila says she still talks to her at night.

"She was the soul of my soul and she left her daughter in my hands. If I have the chance to travel, I will do so for the sake of my granddaughter."

Courtesy: Saudi Gazette

Iran: Zarif tenders resignation

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s vice president for strategic affairs, has announced his resignation, stating that he was instructed to step down by a high-ranking official.

In a post on his social media X account, Zarif stated, “The head of the judiciary, considering the country’s current situation, advised me to return to academia in order to prevent further pressure on the government, and I immediately accepted.”  

He revealed that he met with Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, who suggested that stepping down would ease tensions on the government. Zarif added that he hoped his departure would remove obstacles facing the administration.  

Despite Zarif’s public announcement, government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani clarified that President Masoud Pezeshkian has not yet accepted the resignation. 

Speaking to IRNA on Monday, Mohajerani also addressed the possibility of additional changes within the government. She noted that the law governing appointments to sensitive positions is currently under review by the Social Committee of the Iranian Parliament, adding that officials hope for a swift resolution that will serve the national interest.

“We remain committed to the law, and its implementation is our duty,” Mohajerani said. “However, the reality is that Article 2 of this law could lead to the loss of a significant number of skilled professionals. We hope that a balanced approach will be taken to prevent unnecessary disruptions.”

The debate over Zarif’s position within the government stems from a legal provision that prohibits individuals from holding sensitive government positions if their immediate family members have foreign citizenship. Under Article 2 of the Law on the Appointment of Individuals to Sensitive Positions, Zarif’s appointment was considered illegal because two of his children hold dual US citizenship.

From the outset of the Pezeshkian administration, several members of Parliament have challenged Zarif’s appointment, arguing that it directly contradicts legal requirements. Lawmakers critical of his role have persistently called for his removal, viewing his appointment as a breach of national security policies designed to limit foreign influence within key government positions.

Zarif is a seasoned Iranian diplomat. He served as Iran’s foreign minister for 8 years during the 2010s and was a key figure in the inking of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. He has also been a professor at the prestigious University of Tehran for many years. 

 

Ships being targeted in Singapore Strait

Three incidents were reported in the Philip’s Channel on February 28 between 00:30 and 07:00 hours local time, including one involving the Singapore-registered chemical tanker Basset where a seafarer was injured and evacuated to hospital, reports Seatrade Maritime News.

According to ReCAAP engine spares were stolen in one incident and nothing was taken in the other two. Engine spares are a common item to be stolen in such robbery incidents in the Singapore Strait.

The Information Fusion Centre (IFC) believes that the three incidents on February 28 may have involved the same gang of perpetrators.  IFC noted that the first two incidents, both on bulk carrier Ifestos and DSM Rose were within 1.1 nm of each other, took place less than hour apart, and 5 – 6 perpetrators were reported to have been involved. In the second and third incidents, the latter in which a crew member was injured, the perpetrators reported to be armed with similar equipment.

In total there have been 21 incidents of robbery against ships in the Singapore Strait this year, up from six in the same period last year, and some 16 of these incidents took place in the Philip’s channel with vessels transiting in an easterly direction.

IFC noted that the incidents in Philip’s Channel took place at an area where vessels heading in the Singapore Strait typically reduce speed significantly making them more susceptible to attacks.

While the three attacks on February 28 are believed to be the work of the same group, IFC believes there are multiple groups of perpetrators in the region targeting vessels.

“Based on past trending, it was assessed that there were likely multiple groups of perpetrators operating in the PC, and these perpetrators had good knowledge of local waters and would continue to blend in with the traffic under the cover of darkness, and board when opportune. Perpetrators may target multiple vessels in the same night or over subsequent nights in the same area, especially if previous attempts were unsuccessful,” IFC said in its observations on the incidents.

In 2024 some 54 of the 62 ship robbery incidents in the Singapore Strait took place in the Philip’s Channel.

IFC recommended heightened vigilance, particularly when transiting through Philips Channel in hours of darkness. Ship’s crew were advised not confront the perpetrators and to immediately report incidents to the local authorities and the IFC.

ReCAAP issued similar advice in terms of enhanced vigilance when transiting the area as well repeating previous calls for increased action for the authorities.

 “The ReCAAP ISC urges the littoral States to increase patrols/surveillance in their respective waters, respond promptly to incidents reported by ships, strengthen coordination and promote information sharing on incidents and criminal groups involved to arrest the perpetrators,” it said.