The White House said on Tuesday it welcomes “input” from Arab nations who backed an Egyptian plan to reconstruct the Gaza Strip that does not require relocating its residents, as US President Donald Trump has proposed. At the same time, White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes stressed that Washington insists that Hamas cannot remain in power. “President Trump has been clear that Hamas cannot continue to govern Gaza,” said Hughes, adding, “While the president stands by his bold vision for a post-war Gaza, he welcomes input from our Arab partners in the region. It’s clear his proposals have driven the region to come to the table rather than allow this issue to devolve into further crisis.” Hughes’ comments came after Arab leaders endorsed the Egyptian plan to rebuild Gaza at an estimated cost of $53 billion. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi announced at the conclusion of a summit in Cairo that the proposal had been adopted. Sisi stated that Egypt, in coordination with Palestinian Arab representatives, had developed an administrative committee composed of independent technocrats to temporarily manage Gaza. This body would oversee humanitarian aid and governance while preparing for the return of the Palestinian Authority (PA), he said. For nearly a month, Egypt, Jordan, and the Gulf states have been consulting on an alternative to Trump’s proposal , which they rejected due to the fact that it involves relocating Gazans to neighboring countries. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently stated that the United States is open to hearing new proposals from Arab nations regarding Gaza. "Hopefully they're going to have a really good plan to present the president," Rubio said, referring to Arab nations. Related articles: 'I'd like to get as many hostages as we can' Defense Minister appoints head of Gaza Emigration Authority Netanyahu tasks Mossad with finding homes for Gazans 'Hamas engineered the protests in the Gaza Strip' "Right now the only plan -- they don't like it -- but the only plan is the Trump plan. So if they've got a better plan, now's the time to present it," he told conservative radio hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton. "All these countries say how much they care about the Palestinians, but none of them want to take any Palestinians. None of them have a history of doing anything for Gaza," Rubio added.
